


Stretching You Out Like You Are Elastic

by LetTheMusicMoveYou



Series: Stretching You Out Like You Are Elastic [1]
Category: One Direction (Band), Zayn Malik (Musician)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angry Sex, Angst, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson - Freeform, Hate Sex, M/M, Niall in Later Chapters, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-19
Updated: 2018-02-18
Packaged: 2018-08-15 22:20:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 35
Words: 55,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8075038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LetTheMusicMoveYou/pseuds/LetTheMusicMoveYou
Summary: Zayn’s one of the first people Liam met when he started in the technology field. They were both interns at Google and hit it off immediately. He even found himself in Zayn’s bed upon occasion. That is until Zayn completely threw him under the bus to get a promotion. Liam literally can’t stand the sight of him, even if it is a beautiful sight.
(Or the one where Liam and Zayn are former friends turned enemies with rival technology companies, when a little blackmail brings them back together. Things get complicated).
Title from Feel It by Jacquees ft. Lloyd & Rich Homie Quan





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not that familiar with the technology industry, sorry if this is incredibly inaccurate. Just wanted to write some enemies to lovers Ziam. :)
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam leans back in probably the most uncomfortable plastic chair he’s ever experienced. And everyone says the technology industry has more money than they know what to do with. _Yeah right_. He looks around the crowded auditorium at the other men and women in suits shifting uncomfortably in the plastic torture devices that someone decided passed for chairs. There’s more genius and money in this room at the moment than probably anywhere else in the world. A few years ago it would have gotten him really excited, hell probably downright giddy. But he’s been in the game too long (a few years are a lifetime in the tech world). Back then he would have been soaking up every second, and networking at every opportunity. But now all he wants to do is listen to his only real competition in the industry present what is being marketed as a ‘revolutionary new product’ and get the hell out of here. He has shit to do.

He should really be feeling out the room. Asking around to see if anyone knows what the hell this new product that Malik Industries is unveiling is, but he really doesn’t have the energy. All he can think about is the new app he’s been developing. It’s been the only thing he’s thought about in the last several months. In fact he can’t even remember the last time he slept for more than 2 hours at a time. When he and his best mate Louis started Double L Technology four years ago they had no idea what the fuck they were doing. Sometimes he feels like they still don’t, but they’ve had some pretty major successes in the last few years and he has a really good feeling about this new project. The app is a platform that pulls all of the social media sites a person uses and integrates them into one system. Meaning you could check your Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, and Facebook feeds all at the same time using one app. They’ve been calling it The One. That’s the name Louis wants, but Liam is still open to other ideas.

He hears a commotion coming from the end of the row he’s sitting in and sees Louis not so gracefully pushing his way towards him. A woman sitting a few seats down from Liam gives Louis a disgusted look before she snatches her disgustingly oversized Prada bag off the floor and out of Louis’ path of distraction. “Excuse me love. Beautiful bag by the way” Louis drawls as he winks at her. She doesn’t look amused. In fact she looks like she’s never smiled in her whole life. Louis’ a charmer but he’s not a damn miracle worker. Louis finally flops down in the seat next to Liam and winces on impact. “What the fuck did they make these chairs out of bloody bricks?” Liam smirked as Louis rubbed his bum, “guess they were too busy changing the face of the technology industry to find comfortable seating. Any word on what this thing is?”

Liam watches as his best friend’s entire demeanor changes. His shoulders tense and nearly all of the color drains from his face. “Louis, what’s wrong?” Liam already knows this is bad. Louis is the calmest person he’s ever met, it takes a lot to rattle him. He’s definitely not going to like whatever comes out of Louis’ mouth. “Liam, there’s been a bit of a situation…” “What are you talking a….” Liam’s question dies on his lips as he watches a curly haired man walk up to the podium. Liam recognizes him as the Chief of Operations at Malik industries, he’s pretty sure his name is Harry. Harry’s wearing a maroon suit, floral button up shirt, and a pair of black oxford shoes covered in studs. He looks more like he belongs on a runway than a tech stage but he takes the podium confidently anyway. “Good morning everyone, my name is Harry Styles. On behalf of everyone here at Malik Industries I’m happy to welcome you to today’s presentation. In just a few minutes we will be unveiling an incredible new product that will entirely change the face of the industry. We’re honored to have you all here to witness history in the making.” Liam rolls his eyes in annoyance while still staring intently at Louis who looks like he’s either about to vomit or run away, maybe both. Malik Industries is known for being a lot of things, but humble is not one of them. Liam turns his eyes back to the podium as Harry clears his throat, “please give a warm welcome to the CEO and founder of Malik Industries: Zayn Malik.”

Liam watches as the dark haired man walks onto the stage and gives Harry a hug before taking the podium. Unlike Harry, his style is much more subdued. He’s dressed nearly head to toe in all black, but he still somehow makes it work. Liam’s pretty sure Zayn could make anything work and it pisses him off. Zayn’s one of the first people Liam met when he started in the technology field. They were both interns at Google and hit it off immediately. He even found himself in Zayn’s bed upon occasion. That is until Zayn completely threw him under the bus to get a promotion. Liam literally can’t stand the sight of him, _even if it is a beautiful sight_. He only came to this thing to find out what Zayn’s working on and hopefully use it to crush him later on. But now that he’s looking at the terrified expression on Louis’ face he’s starting to doubt that decision.

Zayn flashes the crowd a smile before grabbing the microphone from the podium, “thank you for that wonderful introduction Harry. As Harry said we have a huge announcement to make so I’m just going to get right to it. Here at Malik Industries we strive to continue to create and perfect new products that will forever change how we as humans interact with each other and with the world around us. Today we will be introducing a new app that is going to enhance the entire social media experience. This application seamlessly combines all of the social media platforms that the user is interested in so that they can check their feeds and interact with all platforms at the same time. It’s truly a one-stop-shop for the world’s most popular social media platforms, which is why we are calling it ‘The One.’ I’m happy to announce that this app is a collaboration with our friends at Double L Technologies.”

Liam takes in a sharp breath and suddenly he can’t hear anything. He watches as the crowd around him claps at the announcement but it all sounds silent to him. His vision blurs and it’s as if someone has shut off all of his senses. Eventually he feels someone shaking his shoulder and he realizes it’s Louis who looks even more worried than he did before, if that’s even possible. Zayn is still droning on at the podium and Liam tries to force himself to focus on his words, “The One will go live exactly three months from today. We will be releasing more details and demonstrations of this incredible new product between then and now. Thank you to all of you for joining in this celebration with us. Please grab an information packet and complimentary gift bag on your way out.”

The people around Liam look thrilled to be able to finally be released from these damned chairs, but all Liam can feel right now is the anger and adrenaline coursing through his veins. Louis is pulling on his arm now trying to drag him towards the end of their row of seats. He notices that Louis’ expression has moved on from worry to that of a wild animal in danger. He plants his feet firmly effectively stopping Louis’ efforts to move him out of the public eye. He’s not going anywhere before he gets an answer as to what the fuck is going on here. “Louis what the hell?” It comes out more as a growl than an actual sentence but he can tell from Louis’ face that he received the message loud and clear. “Liam I tried to stop it I swear, but…” Once again Louis’ explanation is cut off by Harry when the curly haired man pops up by Liam’s side. “Excuse me gentlemen, but if you’ll please come with me we have a lot of logistics to discuss.”

Liam’s hands are clenched at his sides and he can feel them shaking in anger on their own accord. He would dearly love to tell Harry exactly where to shove his logistics but he needs to get answers, so after giving Louis one last menacing glare he turns to follow Harry out of the row. They continue to silently follow Harry out of the auditorium through a side door and into a waiting elevator. Liam watches as Harry and Louis stare intently at each other as the elevator makes its way upward. It’s almost as if they’re having an entire conversation without even opening their mouths. Liam wasn’t aware that they had ever even met. He would ask, but he’s a little too preoccupied trying to figure out how the project that has become like his own personal baby somehow wound up in the hands of his biggest enemy.

When the elevator doors open Harry leads them down a corridor and into a conference room. In the center of the room is a large oak table lined with black office chairs, but the only occupied chair is the one at head of the table. There sits Zayn Malik smirking like the devil. Liam wants to leap over that damn table and throttle him, but he fights to keep his composure instead. He’d like to say something that will wipe the smug look of a Zayn’s stupidly beautiful face but what comes out is, “What the hell is this about Malik?”

Zayn leans back in his chair and places his feet on the spotless table crossing his ankles. “That’s simple Payne. I own you.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all of your support on this one! I'm really excited to keep exploring this verse!
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

People who have been in very serious car accidents sometimes say that experiencing the wreck felt like they were watching it happen to them from the outside. That’s exactly how Liam felt. One minute he was standing next to Louis and Harry on one side of the conference room table and the next minute he was on the opposite end of the room with his hands wrapped around Zayn’s neck. All he could think about was making that smug grin disappear from Zayn’s obnoxiously handsome face. At some point Louis must have succeeded in wrenching him from Zayn because he eventually ended up back on the other side of the room where he had started.

The only positive thing that has happened for Liam so far today is that Zayn is no longer wearing that stupid smug look on his face. In fact his eyes have gone from shimmering with mischief to nearly entirely black with anger. He looks like he could kill someone with his bare hands. Liam has a feeling that his own expression is probably similar to Zayn’s considering that he did just attempt to choke Zayn out.

Liam suddenly realizes that he no longer has use of his own hands because Louis is holding them immobile in his own. Louis may be lanky but he’s stronger that he looks. Liam also can’t help but notice that Louis’ hands are shaking, but not in anger (ok maybe just a little in anger). _He’s scared_. Liam would probably be scared too if he wasn’t too busy being pissed off. At some point Harry must have crossed the room too because he’s now standing next to Zayn patting his should reassuringly, but Zayn shrugs him off. Harry clears his throat awkwardly, “I know tensions are a little high here but why don’t we all sit down and at least try to talk this out yeah?”

Louis is staring at Liam tentatively as he release Liam’s hands, he’s clearly trying to decide what his less than stable friend is about to do next. Liam ignores Louis’ worried look and pushes past him to take a seat at the conference table on the opposite end of where Zayn and Harry are currently standing. Louis lets out an audible sigh of relief as he takes a seat next to Liam. Zayn and Harry seat themselves across the table.

Zayn still looks angry but slightly more in control as he leans forward and rests his crossed arms on the table, “alright, we’d all clearly like to get out of here so I’ll just make this quick. Liam, you and I both know about a certain little software program we developed together at Google. The same one you used to develop ‘The One.’ All I have to do is make one phone call to the right person and they’ll have you and your app tied up in court for the rest of your days. So I propose you take my very generous offer of allowing you to at least be involved in the release.” Liam looks down at his hands which are gripping the edge of the table so tightly his knuckles are turning white. He was really hoping that was the end of Zayn’s speech but this clearly just isn’t his day. “So this is how it’s going to work Liam. You and Louis and your entire team are going to come to Malik Industries for the next three months until this app is finished and released. ‘The One’ will be released as a joint project by both companies and the profits will be split. I believe that’s more than generous on my part.”

Liam can feel his body vibrating with anger as he attempts to keep his voice even. “More than generous? We’ve been developing this app for over a year and you just want to waltz in with three months left and take half of the credit? Are you insane?” Liam’s on his feet now, but his hands are still latched firmly to the table. Zayn’s leaning back in his chair with a satisfied expression on his face. Liam is clearly reacting exactly how he wanted him to. “Sorry Liam, I know how much you hate being outsmarted. I guess somethings just never change do they?” Liam would have probably jumped Zayn again if Louis hadn’t firmly taken a hold of his wrist. Zayn seems blissfully unaware that Louis has once again spared his life by holding Liam back. “Alright gentlemen, I expect you both and your team to be at our development meeting tomorrow at 8am. I’ve added the meeting to both of your calendars. Oh and we cleared out a section of cubicles on our basement floor for you all to work in, feel free to move in whenever you like. See you tomorrow.” Zayn gives Liam an infuriating wink before sweeping out the door with Harry close behind.

Liam drops back in the chair before burying his face in his hands and letting out a muffled scream. When he finally raises his head again Louis is just sitting there staring at him, as if he’s just waiting for Liam to finally pull himself together. Louis sighs, “honestly Li how did you ever fuck him? He’s awful.” Despite himself Liam lets out a full genuine laugh. Somehow Louis always knows exactly what to say. It’s Liam’s turn to sigh now. “He wasn’t always that awful you know? Or maybe he was. Maybe I was always just too distracted by that jaw line.” Louis smirks, “he does have a face carved by angels, I’ll give you that.”

Liam chuckles and then waits a few seconds before asking the question he desperately doesn’t want to ask. “Lou, how did Zayn even know that ‘The One’ existed? And how did he know that we used the program he and I created to develop it?” Louis looks terrified. The same way he looked less than an hour ago before Zayn made that damned announcement. “This is all my fault Li. I am so, so, so sorry. You have no idea. I’ll understand if you never want to talk to me again I just..” Liam holds his hand in the air cutting Louis’ rambling off. “Look Lou, just tell me what happened ok?”

Louis takes a deep breath. “You remember a couple weeks ago when I begged you to come out with me but you said you couldn’t because you were stuck in the middle of that long coding bender trying to resolve the issues with the interface?” Liam nods, “yeah sure. You said you were just going to go by yourself and blow of some steam.” Louis shakes his head. “Yeah I think I might of blown of a little too much steam. See I ended up in this bar downtown and I was already a couple beers in when this really cute guy sat in the stool next to me. He looked a little familiar but l didn’t think much of it, just thought I’d seen his picture on Tinder or something. I’m such an idiot. So anyway, he orders me another drink and we talk and drink some more and talk some more. The next think I know I’m bragging all about the new app my mate and I are developing. It wasn’t until the next morning when he was crawling out of my fucking bed that he felt the need to introduce himself as Harry Syles, COO of Malik Industries. I told you LI, I’m an idiot and I understand if you never want to speak to me again. I did everything I could to stop it but it was just too late, I…” Liam held up his hand once again to quiet Louis and he obeyed.

They both sat in silence for a few minutes while Liam attempted to process everything Louis had just told him. Finally Liam spoke, “Lou, are you saying that Zayn sent Harry in to spy on you so that he could use that information as leverage?” Louis’ shoulders slumped in the chair, “sure looks like that.”

“Oh my god.” That sentiment hangs in the air for a few minutes as they both sit in despair. “What are we going to do Lou?” Louis stops fidgeting with the hemline of his shirt and looks at Liam, “seems like the only thing we really can do at this point is kill them with kindness right?” Liam lets out a scoff at that suggestion until he starts really considering it and suddenly he knows exactly what they’re going to do to get their app back. “My god, Lou you’re a damn genius!” Louis looks at him warily, “What are you talking about and why do you have that determined look on your face? That look always scares the shit out of me.”

“It’s simple. Zayn and Harry played dirty to get leverage on us right?” Louis nods reluctantly, “well yeah I think we’ve already established…” Liam holds his hands up once again. “Well then I say we give them a taste of their own medicine. Act like we give up and are just going to cooperate with Zayn’s little blackmail scheme. And then when they let their guards down and give us the smoking gun we need we strike.” Louis is looking at Liam like he has three heads, “please tell me you are not suggesting that we sleep with the enemy?”

Liam grins. “If that’s what it takes.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be smut soon I promise! Let me know if there is anything you would like to see.  
> Thanks again for reading! x


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank your for all of your nice comments on this one, I'm loving this story so much! Let me know if you have any suggestions for where you'd like this to go. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam awkwardly shifts the heavy box in his arms to his opposite hip as looks up at the sleek black skyscraper looming above him. The huge letters spelling out “Malik Industries” at the top are just as unnecessary and demanding as the the CEO himself. Liam was really hoping that a good night’s sleep would make today a little easier, but all it has really done is give him time to think about this whole blackmail thing more and get even angrier. 

The only thing that gave him reason to get up today and drag himself to his own personal hell was the fact that he had a plan now. The more he thought about _that_ the more he knew it was going to work. Zayn is a self-righteous, narcissistic, asshole who loves being in control. All Liam has to do is let him think he’s won and just wait for him to slip up. So that’s exactly what he’s going to do. _With a god-damn smile on his face_.

Liam lets out one last sigh before using the box in his arms to push on the gold-plated handle adorning the door. He showed his ID to the security guard at the entrance and was given his very own Malik Industries access card. _Yippee_. The guard, who looked like he would probably get winded just walking up a flight of stairs, wiped what looked like the remnants of a powdered donut off his shirt before instructing Liam where to go. “All the Double L Technology guys are in the basement. Just hit the “B” button in the elevator and then it’s the first left in the hallway. Watch out for the spiders though, the exterminators haven’t made it here yet.” Liam grips his box so hard his fingertips start sinking into the cardboard. The guard seems completely oblivious to Liam’s increasing anger level. “Hey, what does the Double L stand for anyway?” Liam closes his eyes in irritation, “the hell if I know anymore.” The guard is completely unfazed, “Oh, alright well enjoy your day man!” 

Liam is slowly starting to realize that maybe the part of his plan where he keeps a smile on his face is going to be slightly more difficult than he initially anticipated. _But practice makes perfect, right?_ Liam sets his box on the floor of the elevator as it plummets to the underside of the building. Liam thinks that it would probably be more appropriate for Zayn’s office to be in the basement, because he’s probably much more comfortable being underground. He’s chuckling at his own joke as the elevator doors slide open. 

The smile immediately leaves his face as he reluctantly steps off the elevator and into the dingy, dimly lit hallway. God, it looks like some sort of low budget horror film that goes straight to DVD. No strike that, more like straight to iTunes. The grey cinder block walls are unpainted and Liam can see the spider webs hanging in spots. _The security guard wasn’t joking_. Liam shakes his head in disbelief as he hurries down the hall and turns at the first door on the left as the guard instructed. 

Liam feels slightly better as he enters the room. The carpet is still dingy, the walls look like they haven’t been painted in decades, and there are various office supplies and computer parts scattered everywhere, but his team is here and that’s all that matters. Louis is running around frantically trying to instruct the movers they hired on how to properly set-up all the computers. His hands are waving wildly in the air and it looks a little bit like he’s trying to land a plane. Liam smiles as he sets his box down.  

He doesn’t even notice someone has walked up behind him until he hears a voice. “I’m just waiting for one of those movers to drop something so we can watch Louis implode.” Liam would recognize that Irish accent anywhere, he turns around immediately and pulls the blonde man in for a hug. Niall is their top developer and one of Liam’s closest friends. He’s brilliant and crazy in the best way. Niall pushes Liam off playfully, “down boy, it’s only 7am.” Liam smirks, “oh well you know, I ‘m just thrilled to be here.” Niall nods knowingly, “as we all are mate.” 

Liam looks around at their team and the disorganized state of the room. “So Ni, are you going to give me a tour or what?” Niall grins, “my pleasure boss!” Liam follows him around the little cluster of cubicles. Niall’s hands are always occupied with something whether it’s a keyboard, a guitar, or any random object he found on someone’s desk. He just can’t sit still, ever. Today Niall’s right hand is furiously solving a Rubik’s cube that he hasn’t looked at once since Liam showed up, while his left hand is gesturing at various things around the room. He takes Liam to each team member’s desk. Everyone seems to be in fairly good spirits considering their new working conditions for the next three months. 

They circle back to where they started to see Louis waving off the movers who look very relieved to be getting away from the insanity that is Louis right now. Louis hops up onto an unoccupied desk and lets out a puff of air, “bloody hell, that was difficult. Apparently you don’t need to know how to follow simple instructions to be a mover.” Niall tosses his finished Rubik’s’ cube at Louis and chuckles at the surprised squeak he lets out when it hits him square in the chest, “maybe you’ve just lost all you boy-like charm Lou.” Louis scoffs indignantly, “oh yeah well that’s not what your dad said last night.” Niall throws his head back and laughs before stepping over to the desk and pushing Louis off the side and onto the ground. Liam rolls his eyes as Louis begins chasing Niall around the room with a stapler. 

He vaguely remembers Niall mentioning something about a break room somewhere down here, and he would literally kill for a coffee right now. He grabs an empty mug out of the box of random crap he brought with him and wanders back into the hallway of doom. He quickly moves through the hallway until he finds a door on the right marked “break room.” Liam pushes open the door to find another room just as dingy as the last but at least it contains a coffee machine. Liam adds coffee grounds to a fresh filter and watches as the machine whirs to life after he pushes the start button. 

He’s too mesmerized by the machine to notice that someone else has entered the room. “So I see you’re settling in nicely.” Liam feels the little hairs on the back of his neck stand up at the sound of Zayn’s voice. He’s not sure if it’s surprise or something else, but he’d rather not think about that. Liam turns to see Zayn leaning against the doorway. He’s in all black again, but this time instead of a full suit it’s just dress slacks and a black button-up. Liam’s always been a bit more casual and today is no exception in his black jeans and grey crew neck sweater. 

Zayn crosses to room to stand at the counter next to Liam. Liam turns back to the coffee pot willing it to go faster. “Yeah well it’s not really like we had a choice did we?” He turns back to Zayn to see that stupid smug look on his face again. “Oh you always have a choice Liam. But I think we both know you made the right one.” Liam bites back the smart-ass comment threatening to fall out of his mouth. If he wants his plan to work he’s going to have to be smart about this. Liam grabs the pot of coffee that has finally finished and pours some in his mug. “Well I’m here, so I might as well make the best of it yeah?” 

Zayn looks very pleased by Liam’s words, he leans forward and for a second Liam swears he’s going to kiss him. Instead he grabs the mug out of an unsuspecting Liam’s hand and takes a sip. He pulls a sour face and puts the mug back on the counter, “man I forgot how you love black coffee. That’s disgusting.” Liam chuckles, “serves you right for taking what doesn’t belong to you Zayn.” 

Zayn is suddenly so close to him that Liam can feel his warm breath on the back of his neck. “You never used to mind too much when I took what I wanted Liam.” He feels shivers run down his spine as Zayn nibbles lightly on his earlobe his hands gripping Liam’s hips. _Not that he would pull away anyway_. Zayn has always had this kind of weird pull on Liam. It’s like an invisible force field that he can’t seem to fight. Zayn begins trailing kisses down his neck and Liam feels himself tilt his head to give him better access. _Shit_. He’s supposed to be the one doing the seducing here. 

Zayn suddenly pulls back when they both hear voices in the hallway. Liam feels like he’s just been broken out of some kind of trance. They’ve both maneuvered themselves into somewhat casual poses when Niall and Louis burst through the door giggling. Who knows what they’ve gotten up to now. They stop in surprise when they see Liam and Zayn together. Zayn clears his throat, “alright then, glad to see you’re getting all moved in. I’ll see you all upstairs for the meeting at 8.” He slips out of the room and Niall and Louis turn to Liam. Louis looks a little shocked that he didn’t find them in a fist fight. “So what was that all about exactly?” Liam shrugs, trying his best to look nonchalant, “just checking up on us probably.” Louis and Niall exchange a look before heading for the coffee machine. Liam grabs his own mug off the counter and pours the contents down the nearby sink. It’s probably better if he skips the caffeine right now on account of the fact that his heart is still beating rather rapidly. 

Maybe this plan is going to be a little harder to pull off than he thought.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I say this every chapter, but WOW you all are so nice! Thank you for all of your lovely comments on this fic. I'm having so much fun writing it! As always, please let me know if you have any suggestions on where you would like the story to go.
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam leans his head back against the stainless steel interior of the Malik Industries elevator as it makes its way towards the top of the building. Closer to this morning’s development meeting that is 99.9% likely to end in disaster (the other .1% is because nothing in life is a guarantee). _Closer to Zayn_. Liam unconsciously moves his hand up to his neck thinking about how Zayn’s lips were there not more than half an hour ago. He closes his eyes and sighs. He might be even deeper into this thing than he realized. 

Worst case scenario is Liam ends up actually killing Zayn out of rage. Alternate worst case scenario is they end up fucking in some supply closet somewhere. _Great_. Now he’s imagining Zayn’s hand on his mouth in the dark, so that no one can hear his moans while Zayn… “Hey Li, are you ok?” Liam opens his eyes to see a worried looking Louis staring at him. He nods slowly in what he hopes is a reassuring gesture, “yeah Lou I’m fine. Just preparing myself for this fantastic meeting.” Louis looks less than convinced as the elevator stops on the 22nd floor. “Please just don’t murder him during this meeting, I’d rather not be an accessory to a crime.” Liam smiles, “are you saying you wouldn’t help me hide the body?” Louis grins back, “I didn’t say that, I’m just suggesting we keep the number of witnesses to a minimum” He winks as he exits the elevator and Liam follows behind chuckling. 

Liam quickly comes to a halt when he realizes Louis has stopped in front of him. He soon realizes what has caught Louis’ attention when he takes a look around the hallway they’ve just stepped into. Clearly the 22nd floor (of course Zayn’s office is at the top of the building) has been upgraded more recently than the basement. The floors are black marble and there is what are sure to be very expensive paintings hung every few feet on either side of the hall. “Holy shit” Louis breathes. “Maybe I should come work _here_.” Liam rolls his eyes as he playfully shoves Louis into the wall. “Go ahead, then I’ll just make it ‘Single L Technologies’.” Louis grins, “you and I both know that’s a terrible name, looks like you’re stuck with me forever.” 

They reach the end of the hall where Niall and the rest of their team are already waiting outside a closed door. Niall has ditched his Rubik’s cube and is now twirling a pencil around in his right hand. Louis snatches it from him and flicks him in the forehead. Niall is sticking his tongue out at Louis as the door flies open and Harry pops his head out, “come on in guys!” Liam looks over to Louis and smiles as he makes a vomiting motion in response to Harry’s presence. On the slight upside, Liam might not actually be the most miserable person in this meeting. Harry did sleep with Louis just to get intel, after all. Although, he probably did it on Zayn’s order and that thought alone is enough to make Liam’s blood boil all over again. 

Liam files into the conference room behind his team. Half of the chairs surrounding the conference room table are already filled by what Liam can only assume is Zayn’s development team. Liam and Louis take their seats at one end of the table exactly opposite of Zayn and Harry, as the rest of their team fills in the empty chairs on both sides.Harry is now standing by his chair while Zayn sits beside him. Liam is determined to keep his composure despite the fact that Zayn hasn’t stopped staring at him since he entered the room. _Seriously_ , it should be illegal to stare at someone that openly in a room full of people. 

Harry claps his hands to signal the start of the meeting. His trademark curly, brunette hair is braided in the back up the nape of his neck and ends in a messy bun at the top of his head. He’s wearing some kind of floral button up shirt over maroon colored corduroy pants. Once again he looks like he took a wrong turn somewhere on his way to Coachella and ended up at a tech company by accident. He waits for the room to quiet down before speaking, “Alright everyone welcome to Malik Industries! We’re so excited to have you here! For those of you who don’t know I’m COO Harry Styles, and this is CEO Zayn Malik.” He pauses to gesture towards Zayn (who is still staring at Liam, by the way). “We can’t wait to collaborate with you all to make ‘The One’ the best new app of the decade!”  

Liam reaches over to pat Louis’ arm reassuringly when he hears him let out and exaggerated sigh at Harry’s welcome speech. Liam can’t really blame him though, that’s an awful lot of sunshine for a guy who will clearly stop at nothing to get what he wants. Harry takes his seat as Zayn rises from his own. He finally breaks eye-contact with Liam to sweep his gaze across the room. “Thank you Harry, and I echo what my colleague has just said. It’s very nice to have you all here. I believe we’re going to do great things together.” Zayn’s eyes returned to Liam as he said that last line and Liam swears to God he can feel his own blood pressure rising. 

“As we all know, all of you at Double L Technologies have been working on this project for much longer than we have. That’s why we’re all going to team up one-on-one to make sure that we get the right mixture of experience and fresh ideas to make this app really special. All of you from Double L will be paired with your counterpart from Malik Industries for the rest of this three month project. Liam and I will oversee development and Harry and Louis will be in charge of marketing and coordination.” Liam hears a “snap” sound next to him and looks over to see Niall’s pencil now broken in half in Louis’ hands. Liam can’t really blame him considering he’s suddenly in the mood to break something himself at the idea of spending the next three months working side-by-side with Zayn. What did he expect though? Did he really think that Zayn was just going to high-jack his prized project and then just leave him alone for three months? _Yeah right_.

Liam suddenly realizes that Zayn is still talking at the front of the room. “Alright, now that everyone has their assignments let’s all pair up and start working on a plan to get everything completed by the three month deadline. We’ll meet again in two days to track our progress. The meeting has been added to all your calendars electronically.” Liam rolls his eyes in irritation. Zayn is literally one calendar notification away from pushing Liam over the edge. Zayn gestures towards the door, “alright everyone you’re free to go.” But he quickly adds, “Liam and Louis please stick around for some additional planning.” Liam hears Louis mutter under his breath “Oh my god, I’d love to plan his funeral.” 

The four of them wait awkwardly as the rest of the group disappears, taking all of the noise with them. It is suddenly so quiet in the room you could hear a pin drop, or maybe even the quiet roar of Liam’s anger. He stands up from his seat. All thoughts of his plan to let Zayn think he’s won have flown out of his head. It’s time they stop letting Zayn and Harry have all the control here. “Alright Zayn, you have us alone so what do you want? Just give us our assigned tasks and we’ll be on our way.” Louis seems to have perked up at Liam’s burst of assertiveness because he’s now standing next to him nodding his head vigorously. 

Zayn just laughs and gives Liam that trademark smug grin that makes Liam want break him in half like Niall’s pencil. “Oh Liam, you were always a bad listener. Let me just recap that meeting for you. You and I, along with Louis and Harry are going to be working side-by-side on every single step of this project until it gets finished.” Liam balls his fists in anger, “and we don’t get a single say in this?”

Zayn laughs again and the sound grates on Liam’s ears like sandpaper. His gaze is still locked on Liam’s and it makes the heat rise on his face “No Liam. You don’t.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like not a lot happened in this chapter, but it was still important to the story? I'd love to hear your thoughts! Thanks again for reading! x


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly meant to update sooner, sorry! There will be more Liam/Zayn and Louis/Harry in the next chapter but I had to have protective Niall make an appearance first. :) Thanks again for all of your support on this one, you all are too good to me. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam leans his head back to get every last drop out of his nearly empty beer bottle. He’s probably going to need about 5 more if he wants the stress knot that seems to have become a permanent fixture between his shoulder blades to loosen. He had been reluctant at first to agree to Niall’s plan to drown their sorrows at this seedy little dive bar only a block from the Malik Industries building, but now that he’s here and the alcohol is buzzing through his system he’s starting to warm up to the idea. They’re tucked away in a small booth in the corner. The crowd is pretty sparse tonight, which isn’t surprising considering it’s a Tuesday. 

Liam looks across the table to Louis who is laughing hysterically at something Niall has just said. He has a feeling that it has less to do with Niall’s punch line and a lot to do with the second shot of tequila that Louis just finished. Niall quickly swivels his blue eyes from Louis to Liam. “Hey, so you never finished the story of what happened in the conference room after Zayn told you that he was in charge.”  Liam rolls his eyes. He was really hoping that Niall would have forgotten that he had stopped the story halfway. It wasn’t a picnic living through it the first time so he’s not exactly thrilled to recount it. “Nothing really happened after that, we just went through boring logistics of the app.” Louis lets out a loud squeak of disapproval. “You kind of left out the part where Zayn threatened to ruin both of our lives if we don’t do what he wants.” Louis quickly shrinks back into the booth when he sees the less than friendly glare Liam has fixed on him. 

Niall looks between the two several times before finally speaking. “So, does somebody want to tell me what the hell is actually going on here? What does Zayn have on you guys?” Louis is now twirling his empty shot glass on it’s side on the table in front of him. Liam buries his face in his hands and lets out a long sigh. He was really hoping they wouldn’t have to drag Niall into this. He also doesn’t really want one more person to know how strong Zayn’s hold on him is. But he can’t lie. Niall has poured his heart and soul into working on “The One,” he deserves to know the truth.

He removes his face from his hands and looks back at Niall who seems to be wincing in anticipation. “Remember that program we used to make ‘The One?’ You know how you said you had never seen anything like it? Well, that’s because it’s one of a kind. Zayn and I created it… at Google. And since we made it while we were working for them, with their equipment, it’s technically their intellectual property. Zayn is threatening to turn us in. If he does they could not only claim ownership of ‘The One,’ but we could be facing some pretty serious fines. And… possibly jail time.” 

Niall doesn’t say anything, just taps his fingers methodically on the table. He seems to be digesting what Liam has just said, then suddenly turns to Louis. “And how do you fit in? What does Zayn have on you?” Louis doesn’t look at Niall, just lets out a whisper so quiet Liam’s not exactly sure if he really heard it at all. “Not Zayn. Harry seduced me so that I would tell him about ‘The One’ and how it was made. And I fell for it.” Louis finally turns to look at Niall, and Liam can see the tears threatening to fall out of his eyes. “It’s my fault we’re all in this bloody mess.”Liam reaches across the table and grabs Louis’ hand. “This isn’t your fault Lou. It’s mine. I never should have used that stupid program. I knew the risk from the beginning. I also knew that Zayn is unpredictable, but I did it anyway. Zayn never would have sent Harry after you if it wasn’t for me. I’m his target and that is putting all you on his radar.” 

Niall suddenly slams his hands on the table making both Louis and Liam jump. “Listen up you two. I don’t give a flying rat’s arse where Zayn has his bloody radar, I’m not abandoning you two idiots ever. It doesn’t matter whose fault it is, we’re in this thing together now. We’re at war. So you both better snap out of it and get ready to fight.” Niall finishes his speech by grabbing the half full beer bottle in front of him and downing it all in one chug. 

Nobody speaks then, they just sit in silence as their anger and fear swirls around them. Liam leans his head back against the cushion of the booth while still looking at Niall. He loves Niall, he really does. But he also knows that he has a mischievous streak that often causes him to set fire first, and then acknowledge the consequences later. Usually it’s Liam’s job to step in and calm him down before he does something he will likely regret, but the more he thinks about it the more he realizes Niall might be right this time. They _are_ at war, and Liam has always been terrible at backing down from a fight. _Especially when it comes to Zayn._ The guy just knows how to push all of Liam’s buttons, in every single way.

Liam leans forward again. He’s made up his mind. “I really did want to keep you out of this as much as possible Ni, but I’m guessing now that you know you’re not walking away?” Niall shakes his head silently and Liam can see the resolve in his eyes, unwavering. “That’s what I figured. So it’s settled, we’re all going to work together to get ‘The One’ out of Zayn’s greedy little hands.” Niall is nodding his head vigorously as Louis just sighs. “Well Niall, since you’re part of the offense now you should probably know that Liam’s master plan is to seduce Zayn and Harry as a distraction.” Liam rolls his eyes at the sarcasm he hears in Louis’ voice, but he is a little nervous to hear Niall’s reaction to the plan.

Suddenly a grin takes over Niall’s entire face, “that’s brilliant!” Louis looks at him in shock before throwing his hands in the air in exasperation, “has everyone here gone mad? Am I living in an alternate dimension?” Liam smirks at Louis, “told you it was a good plan mate.” Niall pats Louis’ shoulder reassuringly. “Zayn loves being in control so if he thinks Liam is submitting to him he’ll be more likely to slip up. And it doesn’t seem like Harry had much trouble using you, so where’s the hesitation coming from?” 

Liam is interested to hear that answer too, he’s been wondering the same thing actually. Louis takes a deep breath as if he’s bracing for impact. “Letting Harry play me like that was one of the biggest mistakes I’ve ever made. I don’t normally mess up that badly. I’m scared that if I let him anywhere near me I’ll let him get the best of me again. I don’t trust myself around him.” Louis drops his head down onto the sticky table before Liam or Niall can respond. Liam’s not sure if either one of them could even talk right now, they’re both just looking at Louis in shock. He’s not sure if he’s ever seen his friend this vulnerable, or this distraught for that matter. 

Liam finally leans forward to grab Louis’s hand, but doesn’t speak until he lifts his head to look at him. “Louis, you are the strongest person I’ve ever met. You are the reason this company even exists. I would still be living in my parent’s basement only dreaming of owning my own technology brand if it wasn’t for you. Sure you made a mistake, but I’ve known you long enough to know that you never make the same one twice. When you put your mind to something there is nothing Harry, Zayn, or anyone in the world for that matter can do to stop you.” Liam gives Louis’ hand an encouraging squeeze before leaning back again. He meant every single word.

Louis gives him a grateful smile. “You give me too much credit, but you’re right. I never make the same mistake twice. Let Harry try to play his little games, he’s about to be outplayed.” Niall slaps Louis on the back, “atta boy!” Louis is shoving Niall playfully in response to the overenthusiastic slap. Liam would probably be smiling at them if he wasn’t so distracted by the doorway. Or more accurately, who just walked in the doorway. Zayn. He’s followed close behind by Harry, as usual. 

Eventually, Niall and Louis stop their banter to follow Liam’s gaze. “What are the odds they would show up here?” Liam shakes his head at Louis’ question. “It can’t be a coincidence, this isn’t exactly Zayn’s usual type of place. He probably watched us come over here from the window of his swanky office on the top floor.” Niall is nodding, “but that might actually be a good thing. They don’t have home-field advantage here.” 

Before Liam can respond Zayn and Harry are standing at the edge of their table. Zayn is smirking as usual, “mind if we join you?” Liam nods and scoots to the end of his bench seat to give them room to join him in the booth. He does his best to keep his expression neutral, “I guess since you’re here you might as well.” He glances across the booth at Niall and Louis to see the determined looks on their faces. He suddenly realizes that it’s three against two.

But all is fair in love and war, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, let me know if you have any suggestions! 
> 
> Thanks again for reading! x


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter turned out a little longer than I meant it to, but I had a LOT of fun writing it! :) As always I would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions! 
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Sometimes Liam has to remind himself that he didn’t always hate Zayn. He remembers the day they met. It was his first day as an intern at Google and he remembers sitting in the orientation room desperately trying to control the nervous shaking of his hands when a lanky, yet gorgeous dark haired boy asked him if the seat next to him was taken. They spent the next ten minutes before the welcome presentation started giggling about what they imagined their peer’s backstories to be. Liam remembers Zayn leaning close and pointing to a boy with spiky hair and a leather jacket before saying, “now that boy there is called William and he is most definitely an expert at ballet.” Liam had been so busy trying to calm his own fit of giggles that he had completely forgotten to be nervous anymore. Ever since then Zayn seemed to be the one who always knew how to read Liam and then act accordingly. Unfortunately that isn’t always a good thing. 

Liam is pulled out of his reminiscing by a slight nudge at his elbow. He looks up to see that Niall and Harry are still engaged in a very lively discussion about what is the better drunk food (Niall is team pizza while Harry is team nachos). Louis seems to have disappeared, likely to get more alcohol. He finally turns to Zayn to acknowledge the nudge, “can I help you?” Zayn smiles easily, unfazed by Liam’s attitude. “Just wondering if I could offer a penny for your thoughts is all.” Liam lets out a bitter chuckle, “you probably don’t want to know mate.” He watches as a flicker of something dark passes over Zayn’s eyes before the smile slides back onto his face. “Well I guess we’ll leave it at that then.” 

Liam takes a deep breath. _Focus Payne, stick to the plan_. He leans an elbow on the table so that he can angle his body slightly more towards Zayn without being too obvious. If he wants this to work he has to make Zayn think that he has genuinely won him over. “So Zayn, is this your favorite watering hole then?” Zayn lets out a light laugh. “Well I guess you caught me. I’ve never actually set foot in here before. Usually walk right by it, but I saw you lot come in and decided to give it a try.” Liam leans a little closer, “and what’s the verdict so far?” Zayn is still smiling but his eyes are as sharp as a razor, “so far I like what I see.”  

Suddenly Louis seems to materialize out of nowhere at the edge of the table with a tray full of filled shot glasses. “Alright boys, let’s get this party started shall we?” Liam sees the twinkle of mischief in Louis’ eyes and he can’t help but get a little excited. He has no idea what his friend is planning but he has a feeling it’s going to be good. Louis plops the tray on the table and slides back into his spot next to Niall in the booth. 

Harry looks amused. “And what kind on party did you have in mind exactly Louis?” Liam watches with pride as his friend keeps himself composed. Louis is in full mischief mode now. “Well dear Harold, I was thinking we could play a little drinking game. Don’t worry, it’s very simple so even you will be able to keep up.” Louis pauses to give a slightly flustered looking Harry a cheeky wink before continuing. “We take turns asking each other questions and any man who choses not to answer will take a shot.” 

Liam smiles. Louis is obviously hoping that plying Zayn and Harry with alcohol will speed along the progress of their plan and hopefully lead to a victory. Liam can’t really argue with that logic. He clears his throat, “I say we up the anti a little bit, eh? How bout whenever someone doesn’t answer a question we all have to take a shot?” Zayn is smiling at him now with a look so smug that his confidence waivers slightly, but he refuses to let Zayn crawl into his brain. _Not this time_. 

Zayn claps Liam on the back, “Brilliant idea Liam! I’m in, what about you lads?” Louis is already lining up the shots as Niall and Harry both nod their consent. Once Louis is finally happy with the shot placement he leans back and rubs his hands together excitedly, “alright since this whole thing was my brilliant idea I say I get to ask the first question.” Everyone at the table is silent while waiting for Louis to begin the game. Louis smirks like the devil. “Right, my question is for Harry.” Harry is smiling but Liam can see his shoulders tense slightly. “Harry…” Louis pauses for dramatic effect as everyone leans forward in anticipation. “Have you ever lied to the bossman Zayn here?” Louis nods his head towards Zayn without ever taking his eyes off of Harry. 

Liam watches as all of the color immediately drains from Harry’s face only to be replaced with a bright red blush. He lets out a nervous chuckle before flicking his eyes to Zayn quickly. “Well, um…” he flounders for a few more seconds before grabbing the shot in front of him. “Sorry boys, bottoms up.” Zayn doesn’t say anything as he takes his own shot but Liam sees his fist clench under the table. Meanwhile Louis looks like a child on Christmas morning, he’s clearly enjoying Harry’s squirming. 

Harry pushes his now empty shot glass to the middle of the table. “Alright my turn for a question then.” He scans the group quickly before landing on Niall. “Niall, have you ever hooked up with anyone at the office?” Liam smiles. He knows there was an incident between Niall and Louis at the company holiday party a few years ago, but none of them talk about it. Niall doesn’t look bothered in the slightest but he reaches for a shot anyway. “Sorry lads, but what happens at the Christmas party stays at the Christmas party.” Louis looks grateful for Niall’s discretion as he downs the clear liquid in his glass. 

Liam pushes another shot towards Niall, “your turn Ni.” Niall picks up one of his empty shot glasses and begins twirling it on his index finger while looking very pensive. He suddenly turns towards Louis. “Lou, what’s the weirdest place you’ve ever done it?” Liam can barely choke back a laugh both at Niall’s question and Louis’ responding expression. He looks like he’s trying to decide between running or staying to murder Niall on the spot.

Louis had (drunkenly) admitted to Niall and Liam once that he has a bit of a public kink. Liam has no doubt his answer to this question would be good. He likely won’t answer it though. They _are_ trying to get Zayn and Harry drunk after all. Much to his surprise Louis shoots one more glare towards Niall before turning back to the group. “Fine.” He locks eyes with Harry as he answers, “did it on a rowboat once. Staying balanced was a bitch, but it was worth it in the end.” Harry kind of looks like he actually wants to take the shot in front of him, or rip Louis’ clothes off right on the spot it’s a little hard to tell. Niall lets out a bark of laughter “so you’re saying you literally rocked the boat?” Louis gives him a hard shove while muttering something that sounds a lot like “I’m gonna kill you” under his breath.

Louis leans forward, “alright let’s move this along shall we? My next question is for Zayn.” Louis’ eyes flick to Liam before he speaks again and suddenly Liam is very nervous. Louis is obviously a little tipsy (they all are). There’s no telling what he’ll ask. “When’s the last time you and Liam hooked up?” Suddenly Liam is regretting this game very much. After their fallout at Google a few years back Liam had vowed to never go anywhere near Zayn ever again. At least his brain did, his body is not so easily convinced. So there have been a couple of slip-ups over the years. Like that technology conference a few months ago and not to mention the break room this morning (Liam is choosing not to count that one though). 

Liam tries desperately not to let the panic show on his face. Louis and Niall know that he and Zayn used have a thing back in the day but they don’t know about any of their more recent ‘encounters.’ This is an infuriating question because no matter how Zayn answers it, he’ll be giving away the truth. Zayn lets out a chuckle at Louis’ question before turning to Liam. He’s still laughing quietly but his eyes are dark. He grabs a shot, “sorry Lou I don’t kiss and tell.” Liam takes his shot gratefully. At least they won’t know _exactly_ how weak his self-control is when it comes to Zayn. He’s definitely going to get Louis for that question later. 

He feels the shot warming him from the inside out, or maybe it’s the fact that Zayn is still watching him intently. Liam is starting to see the flaw in their plan now, Zayn and Harry aren’t the only ones who are drinking. They’re all proper drunk. Zayn doesn’t waste any time moving the game along, “my question is for Liam.” _Great, just when he thought he could relax_. Zayn gives him a blinding smile and Liam braces himself for what he knows is going to be a question he won’t like. “What was the last lie you told?” It’s not as bad as he expected it to be, but he knows he can’t answer it. The answer is probably a toss-up between not exactly being honest with Louis and Niall about his _entire_ past with Zayn, and their plan to beat Zayn and Harry involves quite a bit of lying. He doesn’t feel bad about that last one but he still can’t say it out loud. He gives Zayn his most confident smile before reaching for a shot, “sorry I’m not _that_ drunk.” Zayn laughs and reaches for a shot as well. 

Louis sloppily slams his empty shot glass down on the table. “Should we get another round then?” They all look down at the table which is now covered in empty shot glasses. Zayn leans back in his seat, “actually maybe we should call it a night if we want to be alive for work tomorrow.” Louis let’s out a whine, “aww that’s no fun.” Niall is patting Louis on the head like a child, “he’s probably right Lou. We should get you home.” Liam closes his eyes for a second in an attempt to make the room stop spinning. Zayn’s _definitely_ right. He opens his eyes again and carefully slides out of the booth, “need to hit the loo.” In the empty men’s room he splashes some cold water on his face before heading back out. 

He steps back into the dimly lit hallway and it takes a few seconds for his drunk brain to register that someone is leaning against the wall across from him. Of course it’s Zayn. _Who else would it be?_ Finally Zayn breaks the silence, “I was wondering if you’d want to share a cab? Could save a few pounds that way.” Liam knows that if he says yes that their cab is only going to make one stop, but that _is_ part of his plan isn’t it? He nods, “makes sense.” Zayn smiles before pushing off the wall and lightly presses his hand at Liam’s back as he guides him out of the now empty bar. “Did the others leave already?” Zayn nods as they step into the brisk air. 

They pile into the cab that pulls up in front of them a few minutes later. Zayn gives the driver his address then turns to Liam expectantly but he just stays silent. Zayn doesn’t say anything, just raises his eyebrows slightly then rests his hand casually on Liam’s knee. 

Liam pulls out his phone and starts a group message.

To Louis & Niall: Heading to Zayn’s place. Update you in the morning.

The response is pretty much immediate.

Louis: WHAT?? Are you catfish??

Niall: Wow, nice autocorrect Lou. And way to commit to the plan Li.

Liam: No Lou I’m not a catfish, but I am sticking to the plan.

Louis: Shut up you idiots, you know I meant crazy

Louis: Li, will you just be careful please??

Niall: Yes, please?

Liam: Of course!! 

Liam adds a string of purple heart emojis and smiles. Louis has been obsessed lately with the new Drake song called Sneakin.’ His favorite line is “FaceTime with my shawty on tour and she texting purple hearts cause she know that we at war.” Louis’ been playing it in the office nonstop so he knows they’ll both catch the reference. His phone lights up a few seconds later with more purple hearts from both of them. He puts his phone back in his pocket. 

He leans over and rests his head on Zayn’s shoulder. He forgot how good it feels… to be this close to Zayn. He reminds himself that he’s only doing this to get his app back.

_That_ would be the last lie he’s told.

 


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, over 100 kudos?! You guys are amazing, thank you for everything. This chapter is just basically pure smut :)  
> As always I want to hear your thoughts and suggestions.
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

The music filling the back of the cab is some sugary pop song that Liam would normally scoff at, but right now he can feel his heart starting to match the fast beat as Zayn’s hand begins to inch slowly up his thigh. He turns his head to bury it further into Zayn’s warm shoulder and prays to God that they’re at least close to Zayn’s place because he’s starting to get desperate. This may just all be a ploy to trick Zayn into giving his app back, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t human. He needs Zayn bad. _Now_. 

Unfortunately Zayn likes to torture him. He turns his head so that he’s whispering directly into Liam’s ear. “Do you remember that time back at Google when we were working late? The only two in the office. I fucked you right on top of your desk and the cleaning crew almost caught us. Remember Liam? You didn’t even care if anyone found us, you just needed it so bad.” Liam uses a hand to grip onto Zayn’s knee in an attempt to steady himself. “Zayn.” He really wanted that to be a warning, but it came out more like a needy whine. Zayn’s responding smile is so smug and full of dangerous lust that it makes Liam dizzy. “Don’t worry babe, gonna take care of you real soon.” 

Louis might’ve been right, this might have been a bad idea. He might be way in over his head, but it’s too late because the cab has come to a stop and Zayn is handing the man his money and grabbing Liam’s hand. He could still stop it though. He could tell Zayn he’s going to head home after all and give the driver his address. But he’s not going to. He let’s Zayn pull him out of the cab and lead him up the stairs to his building. 

Zayn yanks him down the drafty hall and finally stops at the door at the end. He’s struggling to get his key turned in the lock, but Liam doesn’t really blame him. It’s probably a little distracting to have Liam kissing the side of his neck, sucking bruising marks into the skin as he moves along. Zayn finally pulls it together and they both stumble into his flat, their bodies never separating. 

Liam’s never been here before. At first glance it looks much fancier than Zayn’s old place, but he doesn’t really get a lot of time to take in the design scheme because Zayn is pushing him up against the door they just came through. _Not that he cares_. Zayn grabs both of his wrists and holds them above his head in one hand while his eyes rake slowly over Liam’s body. And although he hasn’t removed a stitch of clothing yet, he can’t help but feel so exposed. It’s always like Zayn can see right through him. It sends a shiver shooting down his spine. 

Zayn uses his free hand to begin trailing down Liam’s chest. His touch feels hot, like he could burn right through Liam’s clothes. Liam lets out an involuntary whimper when he finally reaches his crotch. He’s already half hard. It’s just light teasing touches at first, but soon he’s palming Liam fully while still holding his hands firmly where they are above his head. Liam hates begging, but he knows it will make Zayn give him what he wants. “Z please…” 

Zayn lets out a low growl, but doesn’t give in to Liam’s plea. “God Liam, there’s so much I want to do to you I don’t even know where to start.” Liam tries his best to get some leverage so that he can buck up into Zayn’s hand, but only has mild success. “Zayn, I don’t care. Just do something before I kill you.” Zayn chuckles lowly, “I forgot how you always get like this Li. So beautiful and desperate.” He unbuttons Liam’s jeans and unzips them tortuously slowly. “All for me, right Liam?” He always gets so possessive and Liam really wishes it didn't make him even harder, but it does. 

“I don’t know Zayn. I might have to go find someone else if you don’t actually do something sometime soon.”Liam’s pretty impressed with himself that he can still get out a coherent sentence. Zayn seems a lot less impressed as he pushes him harder against the door. “Not happening. You’re mine.” Liam would like to tell him all the reasons why he’s actually _not_ Zayn’s, butthe argument dies on his lips as Zayn pushes his jeans down his legs. 

Suddenly Zayn lets go of his wrists and drops to his knees, his hands now gripping Liam’s hips still holding him firmly against the door. His mouth is sinfully close to Liam’s length as he looks up at Liam smirking. “Can anyone else make you want them this bad Li?” Liam shakes his head, but Zayn still isn’t moving. “Say it.” He’s going to make Liam work for it. _Of course he is_. Liam closes his eyes and attempts to steady his breath with little success. He finally opens them again and locks them with Zayn’s impossibly dark eyes. “You know I’m yours Zayn. Need You. Only you.”

Zayn doesn’t say anything. He just rewards Liam by closing his mouth over his clothed erection. He tries desperately to buck his hips forward, but Zayn is still holding his hips against the door. “Zayn I swear…” Suddenly Zayn is standing again, his face only inches from Liam’s. “Come on Li, want to see you spread out on my bed.” 

There is no way Liam is going to be able to tell Niall and Louis about any of this. Because he’s positive the look on his face at the memory of this night would tell them exactly how much he wanted this. He’s not even sure what part of him is acting anymore. _Is any part of him acting? Is Zayn?_

Before he can further explore that dangerous line of thinking Zayn is pulling him through the flat into what he assumes is Zayn’s bedroom. He feels himself being pushed unceremoniously onto the bed in the middle of the room. Everything seems to be moving a lot faster now. Zayn is removing his clothes at a rapid pace. Liam grabs the hem of his own shirt and pulls it over his head. He’s about to reach for his boxers too, but Zayn has beat him to it. He’s leaning over Liam now, his fingers on his waistband. Liam runs his eyes down Zayn’s tattooed body. He’s so beautiful it makes Liams breath hitch. 

Zayn slides Liam’s boxers down his legs. There’s still a wet spot from where Zayn’s mouth was minutes ago. Zayn leans over him and reaches for the drawer of his bedside table. He grabs a bottle of lube and a condom. Liam needs this to go faster. “ Zayn please.” Zayn rubs his hands soothingly on Liam’s hips. “Soon babe, I promise.” 

Liam hears the sound of the lube opening and he watches as Zayn spreads some on his fingers, never breaking eye contact. Finally Zayn brings up a lubed finger to circle around Liam’s rim. “Take a deep breath Li.” Liam does, despite himself and Zayn pushes his finger in. Even though it’s only one finger it’s still a bit of a stretch. It’s been a while since he’s done this, a lot longer than he would like to admit. Zayn is trying to be considerate and take his time, but that’s not what Liam needs right now.

“Zayn, ready for a second.” He pauses, his eyes searching Liam’s. “Does it ever scare you?” Liam has no idea what he’s talking about. He’s having a hard time thinking about anything right now, besides Zayn’s finger inside of him. “What?” Zayn slides another lubed finger into Liam’s heat and begins scissoring them before answering. “The way we love to hurt each other.” 

This is all too much. At some point Zayn must have added another finger because Liam feels himself pushing down onto three. “Now Zayn, need you please.” Zayn just nods and pulls his fingers out. Liam whines at the loss. Zayn doesn’t waste any time opening the condom and rolling it on. He crawls between Liam’s legs again and positions himself at Liam’s entrance. “Ready babe?” Liam nods, “ready five minutes ago Z.” Zayn chuckles darkly as he pushes in. 

The stretch burns deliciously and Liam didn’t even realize he was craving it until this moment. He’s barely adjusted but he hears himself say, “move Zayn, ready.” The look on Zayn’s face tells him he knows he’s lying but he complies anyway. He quickly builds a rhythm until he's pounding hard into Liam. He adjusts the angle so that he hits that little bundle of nerves inside Liam every time. It’s so fast and hard and rough that Liam can barely breath, but that’s exactly how he wants it. 

“Are you close Li?” Liam doesn’t say anything because he knows that the answer is obvious. Zayn reaches between them and begins to stroke Liam’s hard length. “Go ahead babe, show me how good I make you feel.” Liam really hates following orders, but his body betrays him as he feels himself spilling over Zayn’s hand. His muscles clench down hard on Zayn when he comes and he feels him releasing seconds later. 

It takes them both a few minutes to come down from their highs, but eventually Zayn pulls out. He’s obviously trying to be very careful, but Liam already knows he’s going to be horribly sore in the morning. Zayn grabs a handful of tissues from the box on his bedside table and does his best to clean them both up before he crawls up the bed to flop down next to Liam. He pulls the sheets over them and shuts his bedside lamp off plunging them into darkness. 

As Liam closes his eyes he’s thinking about how he should try to sneak a look at Zayn’s laptop in the morning. See if he can find any leverage. 

Zayn doesn’t even know how right he was. They do love to hurt each other. 

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this chapter is a little short, but thanks again for all of your love and support on this fic. <3  
> There's going to be more Larry soon I promise. As always I want to know what you think! :)
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam doesn’t open his eyes again until the next morning and immediately shuts them again seconds later. His head is pounding so hard he can barely see straight. Sunlight is not really his friend right now. He just lays like that for a few more minutes wishing he were dead before he realizes that he can hear the shower running in the adjacent bathroom. And that thought leads him to remember that this is not his house. He went home with Zayn last night. _Shit_. 

Not to mention the fact that Zayn fucked his brains out, but he’s got bigger problems. Like finding dirt on Zayn so he can get him to stop blackmailing them. That was the whole point of last night wasn’t it? Yeah, he definitely didn’t enjoy any minute of it. _Definitely not_. 

He groans before finally opening his eyes again. The sheets on the other side of the bed are still messed up from where Zayn left them. He pushes himself out of bed and gives himself a few seconds to manage his balance before he starts moving. He grabs his shirt and boxers off the floor and pulls them on clumsily. His jeans and shoes are still somewhere in Zayn’s hallway. His attention shifts to Zayn’s laptop sitting on the desk in the corner. Liam glances at the closed bathroom door and listens to make sure the water is still running, thankfully it is. He sits down at the desk and gingerly opens the computer.

He can’t help but feel a little gross doing this, it seems like a horrible breech of privacy. But then he remembers how Zayn and Harry used Louis to find out about ‘The One’ in the first place and he suddenly feels significantly less guilty. The screen comes to life and the password box pops up immediately. Liam sighs and stops to think. 

Finally he puts his hands on the keyboard and types: malikindustries. The “Incorrect password, please try again” box pops up. Liam is really hoping he has the time to try again. He thinks for a few more seconds. _Maybe Zayn’s birthday?_ He types in 01121993, then sort of hates himself for knowing that. Still not it. Suddenly a thought hits him and he really hopes he isn’t right. It’s something Zayn said one time back in the day, “never use your own info as your password Liam. You’re just asking to be hacked that way, honestly.” He takes a deep breath and types in: liampayne. The screen blinks black and then begins loading the desktop. _Well, shit._

He rests his head on the desk next to the laptop. The cool surface feels good on his burning skin. _Zayn is still using his name as his password. What the hell does that mean?_ He really doesn’t have the time to think about it because the computer is done loading and unless Zayn is planning on taking the world’s longest shower he probably doesn’t have much more time. 

_Pull it together Payne, you can have a melt down later_. His fingers start flying across the keyboard. He begins by opening all of the available internet browsers and checking the history. It only takes him a few seconds because there isn’t any history to find. Zayn deleted it. He could maybe download it from the hard drive but it’s likely Zayn deleted that too, because he’s obnoxiously thorough like that. 

He opens the files next. Just like the browsing history, all of his downloaded files have also been deleted. Everything that is saved looks pretty standard. Simple documents for Malik Industries. No business contracts that he can see, or anything less savory. He’s not really sure what he expected honestly. Not likely that Zayn would have a folder titled ‘dirty little secrets.’That’s when he notices a folder that makes him do a double take. It’s titled ‘family photos.’ 

Liam knows Zayn loves his family, but he’s never been one to be big on keeping a scrapbook. He would rather live in the moment than be worrying about snapping a photo, so this folder doesn’t make any sense. He knows if he opens it he will leave a history trail but he could delete it afterwards. He opens the file and there isn’t a single photo inside, just as he suspected. What he wasn’t expecting however, is everything that _is_ in the folder. His eyes widen more as he opens every file. It’s all information on Liam and Double L Technologies. Liam’s schedule along with Louis’s and Niall’s too. A listing of every company they’ve ever worked with and another with all of their previous product launches. 

He’s too overwhelmed but he doesn’t have time to figure it out. He quickly covers his tracks so it’s as if he was never there and slams the computer shut. _Never date a tech genius, or at least never try to keep secrets from one._ He sighs and gets up from the desk. He walks over to the bathroom door and is about to shove it open and demand Zayn gives him time in the shower when he realizes that he’s hearing another noise along with the sound of running water on the other side of the door. It’s faint but it’s there. Crying. _Zayn crying_. 

He leans his back against Zayn’s bedroom wall because he’s suddenly feeling very dizzy. He’d love to blame it solely on his hangover but he knows that wouldn’t be accurate. He feels his legs giving out and his back slides against the wall until he eventually ends up in a heap on the floor. _How the fuck did they get here?_

Liam needs to get out of here. _Now_. He scrambles to his feet and heads for the hallway to find his pants and hopefully his phone. Thankfully everything is right where he left them. _Right before Zayn took him to bed_. _Was he just trying to get information too? Another file to add to his phony ‘family photos’ folder?_ Liam shakes his head as if he could push the thoughts out of his head and orders a cab from his phone. 

He’s struggling to pull on his jeans and shoes when he hears a door opening down the hall. He rushes out of Zayn’s front door without turning around, his shoe laces are flapping untied around his ankles as he hurries out of the building. Mercifully his cab is already waiting for him at the curb. He scrambles inside and gives the driver his address. He needs to shower and change his clothes before work. The driver gives him a strange look in the rearview mirror before pulling into traffic, but Liam ignores him and pulls out his phone. He already knows he looks like shit. He doesn't need to endure a conversation about it.

He opens a group text to Louis and Niall. 

Liam: Still feeling last night. Gonna b a little late this morning :/

Louis: DON’T THINK YOU ARE GETTING AWAY WITH NOT TELLING US WHAT HAPPENED LAST NITE

Niall: Whoa Lou. I still can’t feel my face. No yelling please

Liam: I second that. And there’s nothing to tell. Just crashed at Zayn’s place

Liam rests his head against the suspiciously sticky backseat of the cab and waits for a reply. He knows they’re never going to believe him. His phone lights up again a few seconds later.

Louis: Yeah right and I just saw a pig fly by my window.

Niall: Did you take a pic cause that’s incredible bro

Louis: Shut up Niall and focus. We’re waiting Li…

Liam: Seriously there’s nothing to tell. See u guys at the office. 

He puts his phone away and leans over to rest his head against the cool glass of the window. _Not as good as Zayn’s shoulder_. 

He’s not even sure if that’s what he wants right now. He’s not really sure of anything.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this chapter broke your heart, mine too. :( But I promise it will get better!  
> I don't know how fast the next update will be with Thanksgiving this week, but I'll try my best. Have a good holiday if you're celebrating! :)
> 
> Thanks again for reading! x


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! Sorry for taking so long to update, writer's block is killing me right now. I'm not really sure where I'm going with this so as always your thoughts and requests are greatly appreciated! 
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam closely watches the drink carrier full of Starbucks that is balanced precariously on his left arm as he attempts to open the front door of the Malik Industries building with his right, without flattening the bag of pastries he’s also carrying. He smiles gratefully at the security guard who eventually takes pity on him and rushes over to help him with the door. Once he’s safely inside the building and through the security checkpoint he reaches into the pastry bag and pulls out a chocolate chip scone and hands it to the security guard. “Here you go Bob, this one’s for you.” Bob smiles and accepts the treat.”Thank you, but if I didn’t know any better I’d say you were trying to bribe me Mr. Payne.” Liam laughs before pulling a hurt face. “I would never!” Bob laughs too. “Alright then, tell the boys in the basement hi for me.” Liam does his best attempt at a salute with his hands full and heads for the elevator. 

Liam learned a long time ago the value of having friends at every level of an organization. Having the head of the building’s security on your side is always an advantage. He closes his eyes as the elevator begins its descent. He’s feeling a lot better after a shower and some much needed coffee, but there are just some things that not even hot water and caffeine can fix. _Like his feelings for Zayn for example_. Liam sighs as the doors slide open. His attempt to pull his shit together this morning was mildly successful, but also took a little longer than he expected. Which is why he decided to make a “please forgive me for being so late even though I don’t deserve your forgiveness” Starbucks run. 

He walks into the chaotic room in the basement that has now become the Double L Technologies command center since their official move-in yesterday. He quickly notices that not all of the people in the room are his employees. Looks like everyone is really taking Zayn and Harry’s “team up with your Malik Industries counterpart” command seriously. _If only Liam himself didn’t have to follow it too_.

He plops his peace offering on the nearest unoccupied desk and announces for everyone to help themselves before making his way over to the desk in the corner where Louis and Niall are camped out. Niall is sitting at the desk typing furiously at the laptop in front of him while Louis is sitting on the edge of it. Liam grabs a chair and pulls it up to the desk opposite from Niall. Niall doesn’t even look up from his screen “nice of you to show up.” Louis doesn’t say anything, he just becomes very involved in reading the notebook in his hands. Liam sighs, this is probably going to require more begging than he had hoped. 

“I brought coffee,” he tries weakly. Louis finally looks up from his notes, “no thanks mate. I think I’ve already drank so much coffee today I could run up every flight of stairs in this building.” Niall looks at him incredulously, “not likely. You’re pretty shit at running mate.” There are few beats of silence before they all burst out laughing. Liam waits for the laughter to die down before he starts his groveling. “I’m sorry for flaking this morning. And I’m sorry for letting everything get out of hand last night.” Niall shakes his head, “not your fault mate. It was my idea to go out in the first place.” “And it was my idea to play the drinking game,” Louis added in. Liam nodded, “right so I guess we all suck?” They dissolve into a fit of giggles again. 

Louis reaches over to give Liam’s leg a gentle pat, “are you ok for real? I know we talked about the plan and everything, but you kind of scared us this morning.” Liam does his best to give them both his most reassuring smile. “Yeah, I really am good you guys. All that happened last night was I had way too much to drink and made a fool of myself in front of Zayn before I crashed at his place.” _Oh and they also slept together before Liam found Zayn’s stash of intel on their whole company and then he heard Zayn crying in the shower, but that’s not important_. 

He knows he should probably at least tell them about the file he found on Zayn’s computer, it does involve both of them after all. But he’s not really sure what it all means yet. And it would be irresponsible to concern them before he even has all the facts, right? Probably not, but that’s what he’s going to keep telling himself anyway. He’s positive that neither one of them have fallen for his bull, but they move on anyway. 

Niall sighs and closes his laptop. “Well I’m glad to hear it Liam. And I’d love to stay and chat but I need to go meet Malik Industries’ developer, Nick Grimshaw.” Louis rolls his eyes, “are you kidding me? That guy’s an idiot. He only has a job here because he’s friends with Harry.” Niall smirks, “yeah friends working together. What a horrible offense.” Louis swats him playfully on back of the head, “hey our situation is different. _I’m_ actually qualified.” Niall laughs, “And you’re quite the delight too.” Louis shakes his head fondly, “well go on then.” Niall is still chuckling as he makes his way out of the room. 

Louis turns to Liam once Niall is gone. “So I’m assuming since you’re down here too you’re also avoiding the top floor.” Liam nods, “like the plague.” Louis gives him a sympathetic look, “I think Harry’s texted me like 40 times this morning. I told him I was going to the bathroom an hour ago.” Liam laughs, “Zayn keeps sending me calendar invites to meet in his office and I keep responding with ‘maybe attending.’” Louis pushes himself off of Niall’s desk, “well we said we would work with them for the sake of our app we just never said we were going to make it easy.” Liam nods, “damn right. We should probably actually get going before they come looking for us though.” Louis nods solemnly and begins following him to the door, “you’re right. It’s not fair to inflict their wrath on everyone.” 

Liam feels the knot that his been in his stomach all morning start to tighten as the elevator inches closer to the top floor. He’s not really sure what he’s going to say to Zayn. _Sorry for rushing out this morning, I was too busy freaking out about everything to stay_. Or maybe he should go with, _I know that you’ve been spying on me for months you asshole_. It’s good to have options. Suddenly a thought strikes him. _If Zayn knew all of the projects they were working on why did he need Harry to scam information out of Louis?_ He really wishes he would have had a flash drive with him this morning so he could’ve downloaded the files off of Zayn’s laptop. He had been in such a hurry to look at everything before Zayn was done showering that he could have easily missed something. Maybe later, if he builds up the courage, he’ll ask Louis if he remembers exactly what questions Harry asked him that night. 

Liam takes a deep breath as the elevator doors slide open, revealing the marble floored hallway. Louis squeezes his arm reassuringly. “Ready?” Liam nods reluctantly. They make their way down the hall silently and stop at Zayn and Harry’s office doors respectively. Liam looks over to Louis who looks just as thrilled about this as he does. “Meet up for lunch?” Louis nods, “of course! I’ll text you.” He gives Liam one last smile before knocking on the door in front of him and pushing his way inside. Liam sighs before doing the same.

It’s almost hard to see Zayn in the dark office. The blinds covering the floor to ceiling windows are closed completely and the overhead lights are on dim. Although, the computer screen in front of Zayn does illuminate his face slightly in a light blue glow. Even with the bad lighting he can still tell from across the room that his eyes look incredibly tired. Liam can relate. 

He finally looks up after a few seconds to acknowledge Liam’s presence. “Hey Liam, have a seat.” Liam sinks into one of the large leather chairs sitting across from Zayn’s desk and sets the bag containing his laptop in the one next to it. He winces slightly at the pain in his backside then leans forward to rest his elbows on the edge of the desk, “good morning.” A hint of a smile touches Zayn’s face, “I was going to tell you that this morning but you were already gone when I got out of the shower.” Liam fights to keep his composure. “Yeah, sorry. Had to get home and get some clean clothes. Not really interested in doing the walk of shame in front of every one of my coworkers.” Zayn chuckles. “Understandable I guess.” 

Liam leans back in his seat and gives Zayn his stoniest look. “Zayn, that can’t happen again.” Zayn studies him for a minute before answering. “Okay.” Liam shakes his head, “I mean it Zayn.” He nods but he’s smirking, “I know you do.” Liam rolls his eyes. “God I forgot how infuriating you are.” Zayn leans back in his seat. “I don’t know Liam, you didn’t really seem to mind me last night did you?” He should leap across this damn desk and strangle him for real this time, but the way Zayn is looking at him is making that stupid blush creep onto his face again. Blood might also be rushing other places, but he’s not going to think about that. 

Liam decides not to acknowledge that comment. “Did you ask me up here for a reason Zayn?” Zayn goes along with the subject change, but the smirk doesn’t leave his face. “Yes actually, I was hoping we could start working out a plan for releasing ‘The One.’ I already set it up at the announcement obviously, but we need to find a way to keep the momentum going.” Hearing Zayn say the word ‘we’ when referring to his app makes him want to throw the chair he’s sitting in out the window. He sighs, “sure I’d love to.” 

Zayn chuckles, “good cause we have a lot of work to do.” Liam nods, but he realizes they are thinking about different things. Zayn is referring to planning the app release while Liam is thinking about taking Zayn down.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to say that all of my love goes out to Louis and his family. I can't imagine what they're going though right now. Don't forget to remind your loved ones that you love them. <3
> 
> Thanks again for reading! x


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all of your lovely feedback on the last chapter, I really needed that! This chapter turned out a little more angsty than I meant it to, but I still feel like I'm getting back on track. Let me know what you think!
> 
> Thanks as always for reading! x

Liam’s not sure if he’s ever been as excited to eat something as he is about the hamburger slathered in cheese and bacon sitting on the plate in front of him. It might not be great for his abs, but the grease should do wonders for the bit of his hangover that’s still hanging on. He may be trapped at Malik Industries for the next three months but at least the cafeteria is decent, so his lunches won’t have to suffer too. He grabs the cheeseburger that’s nearly the size of his head and takes a giant bite before looking across the table at Louis who is stabbing a fork halfheartedly at his chicken caesar salad. 

“Is Niall going to be joining us?” Louis shakes his head, “no. Apparently he and Nick are having a ‘working lunch.’ Whatever the hell that is.” Liam grins at his friend’s grumbling jealousy, “I’m assuming it means they’re going to eat lunch while they work.” Louis rolls his eyes before flicking a piece of grilled chicken at Liam. “Thanks for the clarification Li.” Liam smiles, “I’m just happy Zayn actually let me out of his sight long enough to have lunch with you.” Louis nods, “seriously. Harry is so clingy it’s driving me nuts. I’m starting to realize that I work a lot better independently, than I do with someone constantly breathing down my neck. I’m probably going to attack him with a stapler soon if he doesn’t get out of my bloody bubble.” Liam chuckles, “I think a letter opener might be more effective actually.” Louis smiles, “fair point.” 

Liam watches as he swirls some more lettuce around on his plate before he suddenly sits up as if he just remembered something, “were you able to get anything good on Zayn when you were at his place last night? I can’t believe I haven’t asked you!” Liam does his best to keep his face impassive, “no not really. Just that he could seriously benefit from an interior decorator. You should see the paint colors Lou.” Louis’ watching him intently and Liam can tell he didn’t fall for it for one second. “Are you kidding me? You had all morning to think of something and that’s the best lie you could come up with? That’s why you’ve been acting all shifty since you got here? Because of the paint on his walls?”

Liam groans before pushing his now empty plate to the middle of the table. “Lou, I would tell you if I thought it would make a difference.” His eyes are still narrowed and locked on Liam, “if it’s not important then what’s the problem with just telling me then.” Liam knows he’s not going to give up. Louis is nothing if not persistent. It’s one of his most endearing yet annoying qualities. Liam sighs, “fine but let the record stand that you made me tell you.” Louis nods, a look of satisfaction on his face. “I got a quick look at Zayn’s laptop this morning before I left his place and I found some… information.” 

Louis is leaning in so far forward their foreheads are almost touching across the table. “What kind of information exactly?” Liam stammers trying to find the right words. “Well, on us. On our company I mean… and us.” Louis just looks really confused now which is exactly how Liam has felt all morning. “What do you mean Li?” Liam scans the room as if he’s going to see something in the cafeteria that will help him explain this. “I found this folder full of documents that detailed all of our business dealings from the last several years, our products, even our daily work schedules.” 

Louis leans back looking thoughtful, “but how did he get it?” Liam shakes his head, “I have no idea. That’s what’s been driving me crazy. Maybe he has someone on the inside.” Louis’ eyes widen dramatically, “wait are you serious? Who could it possibly be? We’ve had practically all the same employees since we began. Haven’t hired anyone new in years.” Liam nods, “I reckon they either flipped someone or they hacked us somehow.” Liam knows immediately he shouldn’t have included that last part. 

The look on Louis’ face has become so dark and determined it catches Liam a little off guard. Not that he’s never seen Louis fight before, he’s one of the strongest people Liam’s ever met. But he’s not sure if he’s ever seem him like this. The look in his eyes isn’t just anger, it’s also cold. 

Louis is bending down now to grab his laptop out of the bag at his feet. He thuds the computer, not so gently, on the table in front of him. “No one hacks me Li.” Liam reaches forward to place his hand on top of the lid to prevent Louis from opening it just yet. He already knows exactly what Louis’ planning. “Are you sure that’s a good idea Lou?” Louis is staring at him incredulously. “Liam they somehow stole information from us and used that to blackmail us into sharing our bloody app with them and yet you’re somehow questioning my morals?” Liam can tell that he’s fighting to keep his voice at a low level but he can still hear the heat behind the words. 

Liam makes sure to keep his voice as calm as possible. He knows it’s important not to escalate Louis any further. Louis’ a sweetheart, but he has a fierce temper. “Well I mean eye for an eye and all that, but what I really meant was do you think it’s a good idea to try to hack Zayn from inside his own company?” Louis is still glaring slightly but Liam can tell he diffused him… for now. “What, you think I can’t?” 

Liam nearly laughs at that, but he figures that probably wouldn’t be an appropriate response in this particularly serious conversation. Louis is one of the best hackers he’s ever met. He narrowly escaped landing in juvenile detention when he was in high school because of it. He had hacked the FBI simply because he was bored and he could. They eventually let him off the hook in exchange for some help with a few classified ‘projects.’

Liam shakes his head fervently, “no Lou. I know you _can_ , I’m just asking if you _should_.” After a few beats of uncomfortable silence Louis gently removes Liam’s hand from the top of his own laptop before sliding it back into his bag. “Fine, I’ll wait until we’re somewhere a little less _public_ , but don’t think I’ll just forget about it.” Liam lets out the breath he didn’t even realize he was holding. “Wouldn’t dream of it Lou. I would actually love to get a closer look at those files myself. We just have to be smart about this.” 

Louis is studying him closely again and Liam nearly shrinks back into his chair under the scrutiny. “Why are you looking at me like that?” Louis taps his fingers absentmindedly on the plastic table top in front of them. “I’m just wondering if that’s the only thing you withheld from your little sleepover with Zayn last night.” Liam tries very hard not to groan again. “Not now Lou. We’ve got bigger problems.” He moves to stand up but Louis reaches over to grab his arm. “I’m serious Liam. Is there anything else from last night that you haven’t told me about?” He raises his eyebrows, “we _both_ own this company after all.” _Seriously? The guilt tripping is low even for him_. Liam rubs his temples before the truth tumbles out, “fine I slept with him and I didn’t tell you because I was scared of your reaction.” He looks up to gauge Louis’ face. He doesn’t look mad, he just looks like he’s assessing the situation. “Liam, I thought the plan was for you to sleep with him.” 

Liam knows it’s too late to turn back now. “It was. But it just felt…” He doesn’t finish the sentence because he doesn’t know how. But luckily (or unluckily) for him Louis does. He says it so quietly Liam almost doesn’t hear it. _Almost_. “Because it felt real.” Liam closes his eyes and nods. When Liam finally opens his eyes again Louis’ arms are crossed in front of his chest, but his eyes are no longer dark with anger. Instead Liam can see that they’ve turned kind once again. Louis takes a deep breath before opening his mouth. “Liam I think you need to let Niall and I handle this from here on out.” 

Liam shakes his head resolutely before Louis can say anything else. “Absolutely not Lou. This thing started with me and Zayn and there’s no way in hell I’m not going to be the one to finish it.” Louis sighs but he persists. “I get that Li, but I just don’t think it’s a good idea. You’re way too close to this. Zayn has the power to seriously hurt you here.” 

Liam looks deep into his best friend’s eyes. “It’s not like that hasn’t happened before.” 

Louis nods solemnly. “I know. But I’m not sure if you could survive it this time.”

 


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy 2017 everyone! Sorry this chapter is a little short, writer's block is killing me. But I think I like where it's going. I would love to know what you think!
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam shifts uncomfortably in the large leather chair in Zayn’s office before returning his hands back to his keyboard. What he wouldn’t give to be in his own office back at Double L right now, and not just because his chair there is 1000 times more comfortable. His own office also has a distinct lack of Zayn which is favorable. He flicks his eyes over to the man sitting across from him. They’ve both been lost in coding for over an hour now, barely speaking more than two words to each other. After some minor squabbling they finally came to an agreement on the design for the app’s homepage and then split up the coding tasks. They’ve been lost in their own work ever since.

Liam has to admit, it is kind of nice to work with someone that gets as involved in their projects as he does himself. He and Zayn actually worked quite well together back in the day. But everyone knows how well _that_ turned out. Liam sighs and then pushes his laptop further away from himself. He can’t seem to get this one detail exactly right and it’s giving him a headache, he just needs to get his screen out of his face for a minute. 

Zayn pops his head up from behind his own computer, “you alright mate? Sounds like you’re dying a painful death over there.” Liam rolls his eyes. “I’m not your ‘mate’ Zayn, and I’m fine. Just can’t get this bloody code right. May the creator of HTML burn in hell.” Zayn chuckles, “you always say that when you get stuck. Want me to take a look? I’m at a bit of a roadblock myself, we could swap for a while?” Liam hesitates for a second. _Would Zayn really be dumb enough to just hand over his laptop?_ It felt a little like a trap, but there isn’t anything on Liam’s laptop that Zayn hasn’t already seen so he shrugs before pushing his computer across the desk and closer to Zayn. He smiles and hands his own computer over to Liam, “just don’t search my browser history Payne.” Liam sputters and nearly swallows his own tongue as Zayn winks at him. 

Once again Liam is reminded why he never became a spy, subtlety has never really been his strong suit. He forces himself to giggle and roll his eyes, “don’t flatter yourself Malik.” Zayn chuckles lightly as he begins tapping away on Liam’s keyboard. Liam watches him for a second, and he can’t help but think about how intimate it is. Giving someone else your computer full of all your history and secrets. There was a time where that thought would have made him all fuzzy and sentimental, but right now it was just giving him anxiety and maybe a few hives. 

He shakes his head slightly to clear his thoughts and turns back to Zayn’s screen. He _needs_ to see those files again. Maybe it will actually make sense the second time around. His eyes dart to the man across from him one more time, and he sees that Zayn is still lost in his work. Liam does his best to make his face remain neutral as he opens Zayn’s files and then scrolls down the list to find the ‘Family Photos’ file he’s looking for. There’s just one problem, it isn’t there. Liam stops for a second to close his eyes, he needs to get a handle on his breathing or Zayn is going to know something is up. It feels like his heart is trying to claw its way out of his chest, but after a few seconds he’s able to pull it together.

He opens his eyes cautiously and thankfully sees that Zayn still doesn’t seem to be paying any attention to him. He scrolls through the list of files again, but doesn’t see anything that is out of the ordinary. If fact, there doesn’t seem to be any files that have been newly created or updated in the last few days. He’s sure this is the same computer that was in Zayn’s bedroom only hours ago. Zayn must have either deleted the file or downloaded it somewhere else. _Does that mean he knows that Liam saw it?_

He finally closes the file finder and goes back to the code that Zayn was stuck on, but he’s not having much success. His heart really isn’t in it. He’s still thinking about the information that’s no longer on Zayn’s laptop and how he got a hold of it in the first place. He drums his fingertips on the side of the laptop lid absently and suddenly it hits him. Louis was right, absolutely no one would be able to hack them. Louis is _way_ too skilled for that. _So how do you get information from a skilled hacker if you can’t hack them remotely?_ Easy, you get it from their physical computer. That’s what Harry was looking for that night that he spent with Louis. Not for the information in his brain, but rather for the information on his laptop. 

That would explain how Zayn had gotten everything from their business contracts right down to their daily schedules. Harry must have downloaded copies of everything in Louis’ computer onto a flash drive or something. If Liam was alone he would slap himself in the face. _Why didn’t he think of it sooner?_ After all, it’s the same exact thing he attempted to do to Zayn. He looks over, once again, to Zayn’s face of concentration across from him and another thought strikes him. 

This isn’t exactly the morsel of information he was looking for, but maybe it’s exactly what he needs. Now that he knows Zayn’s preferred method of information stealing, all they have to do is tease a secret to Zayn and Harry and then leave one of their laptops vulnerable. Except that this time the only information Zayn gets is the information Liam wants him to have. 

Liam smiles to himself at the thought of it. He might finally have the upper hand here. Suddenly Zayn’s voice cuts into his thoughts, “you having any luck over there?”

Liam gives him his biggest smile. “Yeah, I think I made quite the breakthrough actually.”

 


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to thank you all again for sticking with me on this story! I'm really enjoying writing it. You're all the best :) As always I would love to hear your thoughts!
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam balances the large pizza box in his left hand as he knocks on the door in front of him with his right. The door flings open not more than 3 seconds later, and he’s suddenly pulled into the flat. Louis is practically bouncing off the walls as he leads Liam down his hallway to the kitchen. Not that Liam really needs an escort, he probably spends more time at Louis’ place than his own. Still, he smiles at Louis amusedly as he takes the pizza out of Liam’s hands when they enter the kitchen. Niall is perched on one of the stools next to Louis’ kitchen island with an already empty pizza box sitting in front of him. 

He cheers when he sees Liam, “yay more pizza!” Louis snorts as he shoves the empty box out of the way to make room for the new one, “Yeah thanks for bringing another pizza Li, I didn’t realize Niall was going to hulk out on the first one.” Niall sticks his tongue out at him as he reaches for a fresh slice of pepperoni, “hey I had a small lunch! And it’s not like I ate the first one all by myself.” He smirks playfully as he pinches the small bit of flab clinging to Louis’ middle. Louis yelps before flipping him off and reaching for his own piece. “Well Niall if you didn’t eat during your lunch with Nick, what on earth _did_ you do?” Louis wiggles his eyebrows suggestively as he bites into his pizza. Niall rolls his eyes at him, “we were actually working Lou. A concept you may be unfamiliar with. Sorry to ruin your fantasy of me and Nick doing it behind the copy machine.” Louis nearly chokes on his pizza before throwing the crust at Niall, “bloody disgusting mate.” 

Liam chuckles at them as he reaches for a plate out of Louis’ cabinet. He adds two slices to his own plate and sits next to Louis before turning to Niall, “how _did_ the actual working with Nick thing go?”Niall shrugs as he reaches for the pizza box again, “alright I guess. It’s not his fault, since he just started working on this project, but I feel like I have to waste valuable time explaining my every move to him when I could just be in my own office doing it myself ten times faster.” Liam nods sympathetically, “I know. I’m starting to worry that we aren’t going to be able to pull this off in three months.” Louis makes a pained noise beside him. “That’s not an option Li. There’s no way I’m going to have bloody Harry Styles follow me around like a lost puppy for a second longer than I have to.” Niall looks contemplative, “that’s weird Lou. I always thought you would probably be into pet play.” Liam assumes that Louis is threatening Niall’s life, but it’s hard to hear him over Niall’s cackling laugh. 

Liam waits for the squabbling and laughter to die down before he speaks again. “The annoying part is that Zayn and I actually work really well together, if only he didn’t have that nasty little habit of constantly stabbing me in the back.” Louis and Niall nod solemnly. Louis pats him on the shoulder reassuringly, “did you get anywhere with him after our talk at lunch?” Liam quickly breaks eye contact with Louis and awkwardly rubs the back of his neck. He knows he needs to tell Louis his latest theory about how Harry and Zayn got all of their intel, but he was sort of hoping he could put it off a little longer. Liam’s eyes flick nervously to Niall to see his reaction, but he looks unfazed. Louis pats Liam’s knee, “don’t worry I filled Ni in before you got here. He knows all about the hacking.” Niall nods, “I was about ready to kill someone too. Then I ate some pizza and I felt a little better.” Liam’s pretty sure he heard Louis mumble, “yeah an _entire_ pizza.” 

Liam takes a deep breath. “That’s the thing… I don’t think they actually hacked us. At least not remotely.” He looks up to see Niall and Louis’ confused faces. Louis sits up straighter, “what do you mean? How did they get all of those documents you saw on Zayn’s computer if they didn’t hack us?” Liam sighs, “they definitely stole that information. I just think they got it straight from the source.” Niall stops spinning a discarded piece of crust on his plate and looks up, “you think Harry stole it from Louis’ computer?” Liam winces at Louis’ shocked face and nods to Niall’s question.

Liam sighs, “yeah I do. I’m sorry Lou, I just can’t think of any other explanation that makes sense. My theory is Harry waited until you were asleep or out of the room and then downloaded copies of everything on your computer.” Louis somehow manages to keep his face neutral, but Liam can see the anger and pain in his eyes. He doesn’t blame him. Liam thinks back to earlier in the afternoon when he handed his own laptop over to Zayn, it felt like he was giving over a part of himself. Even though Louis didn’t really know who Harry was when he took him home from the bar that night he still trusted him, and Harry broke that trust in the worst way. 

Finally, Louis leans back on his stool and Liam can see the resolve in his eyes, “ok so now that we know how they got the documents what do we do next?” Liam nods, “actually I had a thought about that. What if we use Zayn and Harry’s own tactics against them?” Louis is giving him another confused look, but Niall is smirking. “You mean we plant some bogus information for them to steal?” Liam nods triumphantly, “exactly Ni.” Louis’ nodding now, “hmm. Not a bad idea actually. But what should the plant be?”

Liam shakes his head, “that’s the part I haven’t figured out yet. It would be great if we could find a way to trick them into giving us their own secrets somehow. Because that’s what we really need here. Leverage.” Niall and Louis are nodding. Louis stands up to start clearing the remnants of their pizza party, “what if we all brainstorm some ideas and then go over them together tomorrow?” Niall nods, “yeah I think I just need to get some sleep. My brain still feels like mush after last night’s festivities.” 

Liam is about to respond when he feels his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulls it out to reveal a text… from Zayn. He somehow limits himself to only groaning internally and not out loud as he opens the text. 

Zayn: u want to come over? thought of some ideas for the branding

Every single cell in Liam’s brain is telling him to say no and he swears that’s what he’s going to type but then his fingers seem to have a plan of their own.

Liam: sure just finishing up dinner at Lou’s. Be there in 20?

Zayn: perfect :)

Liam is about to throw his phone at the wall when he suddenly realizes that Louis is talking to him and waving his arms in front of Liam’s face. “Hello?? Liam, are you even listening to me?” Liam clears his throat, “sorry was texting my mum. What’d you say?” Louis gives him a quizzical look but continues anyway. “What I said was, do you and Ni want to crash here tonight and maybe we can get a fresh look at this in the morning?” _Shit_ , now he has to think of a decent lie. Liam is terrible at lying, reason #108 for why he would make an awful spy. 

He cracks his knuckles, “I would love to actually but I have to stop by the post office in the morning and mail something to my mum. That’s what she was texting about, and the post office is much closer to my house so it would be faster to start from there.” The lie feels utterly stupid falling off of Liam’s lips, but Louis and Niall seem to buy it. Louis just shrugs, “alright then. We’ll see you at the office?” Liam smiles and nods, “basement buddies for life.” They all laugh as Niall lets out a resounding “huzzah!” 

Liam gives them both a hug before he hurries back outside and hails a cab. He’s not even sure why he agreed to this. He’s telling himself it’s just to further the plan, but that’s mostly because he doesn’t want to consider the alternative. Liam climbs into the backseat and suddenly hates himself for the way he rattles off Zayn’s address to the driver like it’s normal. _There is absolutely nothing about this situation that is normal._

That’s the thing about Liam and Zayn though, starting from the day they met they just seemed to fit together like puzzle pieces. It was easy. Even when everything seemed to be melting down around them there was always the physical connection. _But maybe it was just a security blanket, their last ditch effort to hang onto something that just wasn’t working anymore. Or maybe it’s just really good sex._ Liam’s brain is hurting as the cab slows to a stop in front of Zayn’s building. 

He quickly pays the driver before jumping out of the car and bounding up the front steps of the building. This is probably the part where he should be having serious second thoughts and turn around, but he’s not. Whether this is a good idea or not (it probably isn’t), Liam’s made up his mind. He pushes the button for Zayn’s unit and almost immediately hears the buzzer that signals the door has unlocked. He makes his way inside and towards Zayn’s door. This hall didn’t seem as long last night or this morning, but he was a little distracted on both occasions. Unlike last night, he doesn’t have the cloud of alcohol fogging his judgement now. He’s standing here in this hallway all because of his own decision and he’s not sure if that should make him feel better or terrify him. 

He’s barely knocked on the door when it opens in front of him, and his fist almost collides with Zayn’s face out of suprise. Zayn chuckles at Liam’s expression and steps to the side to let him in. Zayn’s traded his stiff office look for a pair of black trackies and a black v-neck t-shirt with bare feet, but that isn’t to say he doesn’t still look good. _It would be kind of nice if he didn’t look strikingly handsome every goddamn hour of the day_. Maybe then Liam could actually focus for once in his life. 

Zayn leads him into what Liam assumes is his lounge, he didn’t really get much of a tour last night. He sinks down on the couch resting against the wall on the far end of the room and motions for Liam to sit as he reaches for his laptop that’s sitting on the coffee table in front of him. “Thanks for coming Li. I just started getting all these ideas in my head and I wanted to tell you before I lost them.” Liam sits on the cushion next to Zayn and rests his feet on the coffee table. “You know Z there is this little thing called email that you can use to send people your ideas without actually talking to them in-person. In fact, I know you know what it is because you use it to send me calendar invites every two seconds.” Zayn rolls his eyes as he leans forward to push Liam’s shoes off his table. “For your information, I felt like this would be easier to talk about in-person. And I’m surprised to hear that _you_ know what emails are since you never seem respond to mine.” 

Liam smirks, “yeah well I guess I’m just a busy bloke.” Zayn rolls his eyes as he pulls up a word document on his computer. “Ok, well now that I have your undivided attention I have a list of ideas to discuss.” Liam groans, but scoots closer anyway to get a better look at the list. He tries not to think too much about how his thigh is lightly touching Zayn’s, but before long they’re lost in planning the app launch and suddenly an hour’s past.

Zayn squints again at his computer screen, “don’t you think that maybe calling this the ‘app of the century’ is a little much?” Liam looks at him quizzically, “wait… is the almighty Zayn Malik actually trying to take a more humble approach to something?” Zayn shoves him playfully in the shoulder, “wow I can’t believe I would be so disrespected in my own house.” Liam chuckles before leaning back against the couch and then somehow his head just seems to find Zayn’s shoulder. He closes his eyes. “So tired… can’t do anymore work.” He feels Zayn’s body shake slightly from the light laugh rumbling deep in his chest. “Sorry babe, are you still tired out from last night?” 

Liam smiles without opening his eyes, “you wish. Was a little tame for me actually.” Zayn laughs again, but this time it has a bit of an edge to it that makes Liam’s stomach do an involuntary flip. Suddenly he feels Zayn’s warm breath ghost against his ear, “You were always a shit liar Li.” Finally, Liam opens his eyes again and comes face-to-face with Zayn’s own impossibly dark ones. “Maybe you don’t know me as well as you think you do.”

Zayn smirks as he looks down at the tent forming in the front Liam’s jeans. “Like I said, you were always a shit liar.”

 


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, it's been a million years but I'm finally updating! Writer's block is seriously killing me, but I just wanted to say thank you to all of you for sticking with this story. Your comments and kudos make me want to keep going. :) 
> 
> As always I'd love to know what you think.
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam leans his head against the cold tiles of the shower. It’s a sharp contrast to the scolding hot water raining down on his body. He should probably turn it to a cooler temperature before his skin melts off, but he’s kind of enjoying the burn. It seems lately like he prefers to choose pain over nothing, over numbness. Maybe he’s addicted to the pain. 

His mum is always going on and on about how she’s so proud of him for escaping the family demons. To say that his family has a history of addiction in it’s tree would be a great understatement. His mum has watched more family members than she can probably count struggle with their vices, and often lose to them. There’s not really one thing in particular. Drugs, alcohol, gambling, you name it. His mum had a bit of a brush with pills back in the day, but luckily she was able to kick it before he was born.

After all the years of his mum praising him for staying on the straight and narrow, he actually started to believe it too. He thought maybe he had been able to dodge the darkness, unlike so many others in his bloodline. The problem is, he was wrong. Liam does have an addiction. _Zayn_.

No matter how many times he tells himself that Zayn will do nothing but bring him misery, he still can’t seem to walk away for good. Not even when Zayn proves him right by hurting him over and over again. Maybe it’s because he forgets after time, how painful it was. Or maybe it’s that he secretly likes the pain. He can’t seem to stop. Can’t stop thinking about Zayn’s teeth brushing against his neck right before they sink into his skin, or his lips on Liam’s ear as they whisper the kind of words that make his knees weak. _He can’t say no_. 

He’s pulled out of his deep thoughts by the sound of the bathroom door opening. He’s about to yell something about the value of privacy before deciding against it. _This is Zayn’s bathroom after all_. He closes his eyes when he hears Zayn’s voice from the other side of the shower curtain. “You going to stay in there all day, or do you think I could get a chance for a shower?” 

Liam runs his hands through his wet hair, “maybe it would go faster if you join me?” That was really stupid, _but he can’t stop_. Zayn must have already been one step ahead of him, because it’s only seconds later that he feels Zayn’s body pressed against his own. He feels himself leaning into Zayn’s touch as his fingers draw circles on Liam’s hips and his lips trail kisses along his shoulder blades. Zayn drags his lips up to the shell of Liam’s ear. “I’m really glad you stayed this time. Gives me more time to make you scream my name.” 

Liam tries not to moan as the words sink into his brain and Zayn nibbles on his ear. “Somebody thinks pretty highly of themselves. Not sure if you can deliver on all those big promises.” He doesn’t even have to see Zayn to know he’s smirking. “You know how much I love a challenge.” 

Liam does know, better than anyone.

***

It’s over an hour later when they’re finally climbing into a cab to go to work. Liam slides into the seat next to Zayn before looking down at his outfit. He’s really hoping that no one notices that he’s wearing yesterday’s black jeans and Zayn’s dark blue cashmere jumper. It might be the only item of clothing in his entire wardrobe that isn’t black so Liam assumes it doesn’t get a lot of wear. 

Although they had spent a significantly longer amount of time than usual in the shower they should still be able to make it to work relatively on time. Which is good for Liam because there is no way in hell that he would be able to explain this to Louis and Niall. He's having enough trouble explaining it to himself. It takes a few minutes before he gets the feeling that he’s being watched. When he looks up he sees Zayn’s dark eyes laser focused on him. “Didn’t your mum ever tell you it’s not polite to stare?”

Zayn chuckles in response. “Sorry. I was just wondering where your head was at is all? You looked like you were deep in concentration.” Liam rolls his eyes. “Maybe I was preparing myself to survive another long day working with you.” Zayn hums to himself as if he’s considering that, before suddenly dropping his voice low enough so that only Liam can hear him. “That would be a lot more convincing if I didn’t just have you on your knees in my shower an hour ago, babe”. Liam knows there’s no possible way their driver could have heard that, but he flicks his eyes to him nervously anyway as his cheeks flush pink in embarrassment. As he predicted, the man in the driver’s seat looks completely oblivious to the fact that Zayn is pushing every single one of Liam’s buttons with absolute precision. Liam’s not sure if he wants to punch him in the face or climb in his lap. _Probably both_. 

He doesn’t get a chance to decide because the cab is already pulling to a stop in front of the Malik Industries building. Liam is just praying to any god that exists that no one from his company, _especially not Louis or Niall_ , sees him and Zayn getting out of the cab together. He would have a pretty difficult time explaining that one away. 

Luckily the coast seems to be clear as they make their way to the front doors. As usual, Bob is standing at the security check point just inside the doors to greet them. Liam is pretty sure he see's Bob's eyebrows lift in confusion for a fraction of a second, but he could have imagined it. Zayn turns to him after they both make it through the metal detectors and have scanned their access badges. “You coming up to the top floor?” Liam nods as he stuffs his badge back into his wallet, “yeah just wanna check on the basement first. Meet you in a few?” Zayn nods as he’s already heading to the elevator. 

Liam turns back to Bob with a sheepish grin. “So how many chocolate chip scones is it going to cost me to get you to keep quiet about seeing us come in together this morning?” Bob lets out a genuine laugh that makes his entire body shake. It’s a good laugh and it makes Liam chuckle too. Bob finally pulls himself together after a few minutes and grins. “Since I like you so much, I’ll give you this one on the house.” Liam smiles back, “I know you technically work for Zayn but I like to believe that I’m you’re favorite. Bob laughs again, “I can neither confirm or deny that.” He gives Liam a wink. “Have a good day Mr. Payne.” Liam nods. “You don’t get paid enough Bob.” He can still hear the security guard’s laugh as he steps onto the elevator.

***

Liam finds himself back in the elevator not long after that. He did a quick walkthrough of the basement to check on everything, but everyone seemed to be in pretty good spirits. Louis and Niall weren’t there, apparently they're already hard at work with Harry and Nick respectively. Liam can’t help but feel a little guilty that he’s relieved that he didn’t have to face them yet. They’ve just always been so good at seeing right through him. It’s not just the fact that he lied last night about needing to go to the post office. He’s also avoiding them because he knows they’re going to want to talk about what bogus information they’re going to plant for Zayn and Harry to steal. And Liam’s not sure if he’s ready for that. He definitely still wants to take Zayn down, he’ll never forgive him for stealing their app the way he did and for hurting Louis. But all of that gets especially more complicated when Liam has bruises in the shape of Zayn’s fingers all over his body and the scent of Zayn’s shampoo still in his hair. 

He leans his head against the wall of the empty elevator as it inches it’s way closer to the top floor. He’s really hoping that Zayn isn’t the addiction that does him in.

 


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everybody! I feel like I say this every chapter, but I'm going to say it again: thank you so much for all of your love and support on this fic! You all keep me writing. A few of you have been asking me for Zayn's POV in this story, so I decided to give it a shot. It turned out a little darker than I meant it to, oops!
> 
> I'd love to know what your thoughts are. The next update will most likely switch back to Liam's POV, but let me know if you'd like to hear more from Zayn's side in the future. Thanks! :)
> 
> Thanks for reading! x
> 
> P.S. Reposting this chapter because AO3 seemed to be glitchy yesterday. <3

Zayn drums his fingertips on the smooth surface of his desk as he waits for his computer to boot up. Normally he’s the epitome of cool and smooth, but today he feels wound up and fidgety. Nothing seems to be going fast enough. He absolutely despises waiting around or going slowly. That is his general rule, but there’s one exception. Liam.

If every second he spends with Liam takes a little bit longer, he’s fine with that. Gives him more time to memorize the lift in his voice that always creeps in when he gets excited about something, more time to make sure he’s touched every inch of him and every crevice, more time to watch Liam absolutely come apart under his own fingertips. It’s breathtaking. Every time he gets even one second more, he knows he should savor it. He knows every second is a stolen second that he doesn’t deserve.

He also knows they’re playing a dangerous game. It’s a little bit like playing a footie match on the roof of a skyscraper. The knowledge that someone could lose their balance and topple off the edge at any second is both terrifying and thrilling at the same time. The danger makes the stakes higher, but it also makes the victory feel that much more rewarding. Although he figures it’s always been a little bit like that when it comes to Liam. His feelings have always felt heightened whenever Liam is involved.

Suddenly, he’s jolted out of his thoughts by the beep of his laptop indicating that it has decided to finally load. Zayn hums to himself as he types in his password. He types it wrong the first time, but quickly remembers he had to change it a few days ago. Using Liam’s birthday was a bit stupid if he’s being honest. Not as stupid as leaving his laptop around for Liam to find though. He probably never would have figured it out if it hadn’t been for Liam’s sudden departure that first morning he stayed over and the fact that the position of his laptop on his desk had been shifted slightly.

His Mum always says he’s too observant for his own good sometimes. Maybe she’s right, maybe it would have been better if he could have just stayed blissfully unaware of the fact that Liam tried to steal information seconds after climbing out of Zayn’s bed. Maybe then he wouldn’t be second guessing ever single movement Liam’s made since then. Although, to be fair he can’t judge. That would be just plain hypocritical, and that’s not his style.

He knows he started this. Knows he fired the first shot. He also knows that Liam would never back down from a fight, even if it means nearly killing himself in the process. Sometimes he thinks he might know Liam better than he knows himself, and that thought scares the hell out of him. He thinks back to the start, when they were younger and more innocent. Everything seemed so much easier back then, but maybe it wasn’t.

Zayn still remembers the look on Liam’s face when he realized that Zayn had sold him out. Can still see it burned into his brain when he closes his eyes. It was a look of pure pain, as if Zayn had just stabbed a knife deep in his gut and given it a quick twist. Zayn figures that kind of did, figuratively. It had seemed to make sense then. He had found a way to justify it in his own brain, but then when Liam gave him that look he completely forgot the reasoning. But it was already too late.

Eventually Liam stopped giving him that look whenever he saw him. In fact, he stopped acknowledging him all together. Somehow that was worse. Having Liam hate him seemed better than having him act as if he didn’t exist. He can pretend like he started this whole thing to increase profits and bring down their biggest rival, but he knows deep down that it’s a lie. It was all because of Liam, it usually is.

It all got out of hand too fast though. Like a train that’s already gone off the tracks, there’s no way to stop the impending crash now. The thing is, it’s not just he and Liam that are in the danger zone. Harry and Louis too. Harry has been a great business partner, and an even better friend to him over the years. He didn’t mean to drag him into this, he really didn’t.

His head snaps up when he hears someone rap lightly on his office door before pushing it open. He’s about to say something to Liam about his trip to the basement being a quick one before he realizes it’s not Liam in his office. Liam probably wouldn’t ever wear black trousers with wide white pinstripes and a black button up that’s buttoned up barely halfway. That would only be Harry.

He can’t help but smile at his friend. Harry’s sense of fashion might be a little forward for most people, but it’s nothing compared to the brilliant and wacky ideas that float around in his brain. Zayn knows that his company never would have gotten off the ground without Harry’s creative vision, and he’s eternally grateful.

Harry smiles back at him as he sinks down into the leather chair opposite of Zayn’s desk. Zayn can’t help but notice that the light in his eyes seems to be a little dimmer than usual, he looks worn out. Zayn closes his laptop to give Harry his full attention. “Alright mate?” Harry nods, but Zayn’s not sure if he’s trying to convince him or himself. “Im fine, just a little tired is all. I’ve been crunching the numbers and it looks like we’re a little off the three month schedule, probably by a few weeks.” Zayn studies him closely as he speaks. He has a feeling this isn’t about numbers or timelines.

He leans back in his chair, “don’t worry about it Haz. We knew there were going to be a few growing pains when we merged the two companies for this project. If it takes a little longer we’ll just spin it in marketing. Worth the wait and all that.” Harry’s nodding absently as he studies the plant sitting on the corner of Zayn’s desk. It was a gift from his Mum, she insisted that greenery is good for the thought process. Harry looks up from Zayn’s plant suddenly, “do you ever water this? It looks a little stressed.”

Zayn chuckles as he reaches into a drawer in his desk and pulls out a bottle of water. He’s still shaking his head fondly as he passes it to Harry. “Are you sure you’re not just projecting your own stress onto my plant?” His tone is still joking, but he’s mostly serious. He’s worried about Harry.

Harry takes his time screwing the lid back onto the bottle of water after he’s poured what he deems to be a satisfactory amount of water into the plant’s pot. Finally his eyes lift back up to Zayn. “I don’t know if I can do this anymore.” His voice has gone so quiet that Zayn isn’t sure if he’s actually heard him at first. He lets Harry’s words sink in before he responds. “I know this is hard H. I know I’m asking for a lot.”

He can see now that it’s not just fatigue in Harry’s eyes, there’s also pain. Harry’s voice is still quiet, but it’s steady. “You know I would do anything for you Z. I would walk over the coals for you. Hell I have. But this isn’t good for anyone.”

Zayn sighs, he knows he's right. “Haz I know, I..” Harry holds up a hand to stop him. “I’m not an idiot Zayn, I can see what’s been going on with Liam. Saw you both arrive to work together this morning. Do you honestly think there’s anyway that could end well? After everything that’s happened?” Harry’s out of his chair now, looking out of the large window in Zayn’s office. He’s not facing Zayn anymore so he almost doesn’t hear the next question that falls off of Harry’s lips. “Do you honestly think he could forgive you after what we’ve done?”

Zayn can’t breathe, like someone punched him in the gut. He rubs his fingertips into his temples as he tries to control his breathing. “Harry, this is my mess. This is not your fault.” Harry’s still standing at the window, but he’s facing Zayn again. “We both know I played my part in this Zayn. I mucked it up and made it worse.”

Zayn is about to respond, but stops cold when they hear another knock on the door. Liam is about halfway through the doorway when he realizes that Zayn isn’t alone. He starts backing up immediately, “sorry to interrupt. I’ll just wait outside.” Harry shakes his head and is already heading for the door. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll let you guys get to work. Louis’ probably waiting for me anyway.” He glances back to Zayn with what feels like a loaded look. “We’ll finish talking about this later Z.” Zayn nods and with that Harry’s gone.

Liam quickly sinks down into the chair Harry had been in only minutes ago. Zayn almost forgot that Liam was wearing his jumper. It looks so much better on him. Harry’s right, this needs to end.

The problem is if he drops this fight it will mean he goes back to not existing in Liam's world, and he’s not sure if he can bear it.

 


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Definitely meant to get this chapter out sooner, but it's been sitting half finished on my computer until I could decide where I wanted it to go. Thank you so much again for reading this and sharing your thoughts with me, I'm having so much fun writing it. :)
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam studies Zayn as he taps away on his laptop behind his desk. He’s not really sure what happened, but there’s something different about Zayn. Maybe it’s the slight tension in his shoulders or the scowl on his face, Liam didn’t notice either of those things earlier this morning. Although he was a little preoccupied, what with his eventful shower and all. But still, that sure as hell wasn’t just nothing that he interrupted earlier between Zayn and Harry. 

Harry had actually looked a little angry, which was weird. Liam doesn’t know him well, but he never really seemed capable of anger. It was like he was the opposite of Zayn in every single way. Zayn was dark brooding anger and passion, while Harry was bright sunshine and joy. Maybe Liam just got Harry wrong. He did screw over Louis, _quite literally_ , so he can’t be a total angel. Although maybe Liam doesn’t really know Zayn either, maybe that’s the reason they’re in this mess to begin with. 

Liam thought he knew him, once upon a time. That was before Zayn went and turned everything upside down, before he changed the rules to a game that Liam wasn’t even aware they were playing. Maybe Liam just needs to be better at games. _That’s what he’s trying to do, isn’t it?_ Beat Zayn at his own bloody game. The problem is it’s too easy to get wrapped up in it. He’s not sure what he’s more afraid of: forgetting it’s a game, or liking the game more than he likes reality. 

He’s pulled out of his thoughts when he hears Zayn’s laptop slam shut. He focuses his gaze back to the man across from him to find him with his elbows on the desk and his fingertips massaging his temples. He looks like he's fighting some sort of internal murderous rage. Liam tries to appear as neutral as possible as he continues to tap away on his own computer. “You alright mate?” 

It takes a few minutes before Zayn finally looks up at him. Liam is starting to wish he hadn't said anything, because the look on the other man’s face is intense. It’s dark and menacing. It’s a look Liam has seen a few times before, a look that sends a jolt of equal parts fear and thrill running up his spine. Zayn lets the look linger and burn into Liam’s soul for a few more seconds, before he finally answers. 

“I’m fine Li. ’S nothing I can’t handle.” His tone is definitive and Liam can’t help but feel that maybe that sentence was intended to be a threat. Or maybe the threat of a threat. Nothing is making sense in Liam’s brain. Nothing has really made sense since he attended that bloody Malik Industries’ product launch a few days ago, if he’s being honest. 

He’s trying to wrack his brain for something he’s done that could possibly make Zayn give him that look. He can’t really think of it. Even if Zayn does know that Liam took a peak at his laptop, which he suspects he does, he’s known that for days. It wouldn’t make sense for him to be upset about it now. The only thing he’s been guilty of doing within the last 24 hours is allowing Zayn to fuck his brains out, it’s highly unlikely that he’s’ angry about that. 

Then a bad thought hits him. _What if Louis went through with his plan to hack Malik industries?_ _Surely he wouldn’t_. Especially not after Liam told him it was a bad idea. And they had agreed on the ‘giving Zayn and Harry false information’ plan hadn’t they? Although, he did leave Louis and Niall to their own devices last night. That has had a tendency to come back and bite him in the arse in the past. It was also very weird for them to not be waiting for him in the basement this morning. He had been relieved at the time, but maybe it was intentional on their end. Maybe they were trying to prolong an inevitable argument. 

But hypothetically, if Louis _had_ hacked Zayn and Zayn knew about it then that means Louis had been caught. That is highly unlikely, Louis can hack secret government branches with his eyes closed and one hand tied behind his back. Liam watched him do it once when he was trying to prove a point, nearly got them both thrown in jail. Louis doesn’t get caught unless he wants to be. _Shit_. 

Maybe that was his point, to get Zayn’s attention. _Or maybe it was to get Liam’s attention_. Louis and Niall have always had a pretty good knack of reading him like an open book. If they suspected anything was going on with Zayn behind their backs they might go to extremes to send him a message. He loves both of them dearly, but subtle they are not. 

Liam gently shakes his head in an attempt to clear the thought from his mind. Surely, he’s just letting this very hypothetical situation run wild in his mind. It’s probably something else entirely that has Zayn fuming. Maybe Topman stopped carrying his favorite shade of black or something. 

Zayn is standing up now and shoving his laptop into his briefcase. Liam looks up at him bewildered, “where are you going?” Zayn fixes that intense gaze on him again and there’s part of Liam that just wants to give him whatever he wants, whatever will fix this. That’s the part of Liam that terrifies himself. “I’m taking an early lunch Li. You’re welcome to stay in here and work.” He pauses for a second at the door and turns back around, “I trust that you’re able to keep your hands out of places that they don’t belong.” 

He’s out the door before Liam can even have a chance to respond, or close his gaping mouth. It’s not like he’s never seen Zayn like this before, he’s just not sure where the sudden change came from. He sighs and leans forward to let his forehead rest on the top of Zayn’s desk. He stays there for several minutes, with his head pressed to the cool surface and no noise in the room except for his breathing. As much as he would love to just stay there and contemplate every choice he’s made in the last few days, he knows he needs to figure out what the hell is going on. He needs to find Louis.

***

It’s easy enough to spot Niall and Louis in the basement right away. They’re both sitting cross-legged on the desk that has become Niall’s makeshift office. It looks like they’ve brought their own lunches today, although Liam’s not sure how much of it they’re actually eating. Louis is flicking a grape at Niall as Liam approaches. They both smile as he sits in the chair next to Niall’s desk. 

Louis nods at him as he reaches for another grape, “hey Li. How’s life on the top floor?” Liam decides to go for a grunt as opposed to an actual answer. “So what did you two get up to after I left last night, anything exciting?” He’s trying to keep the pleasant smile plastered on his face, but he knows his tone is nothing but. He catches Niall glance at Louis nervously, but Louis’ expression remains passive. “Oh nothing really. How was the post office this morning?” Liam refuses to let Louis’ weird line of questioning throw him off. “Had to wait in the queue for ages, but it was fine.” 

He looks up at Louis again and as soon as he sees the smug expression on his face, he knows he made a mistake. “Well that’s rather weird, seeing as today is a bank holiday and the post office is most certainly closed. Wouldn’t have thought there would have been much of a line at all.” Liam glances at Niall who seems to have become very engrossed in the sandwich he’s eating. Liam’s clearly not going to get any support from him. 

Liam takes a deep breath. He’s going to have to face this head-on or Louis is never going to let it go. Liam loves him, but he’s probably the stubbornest human being he’s ever met. “Fine, I lied ok?” He lets the question hang in the air for a few seconds before he continues. “But that didn’t give you the right to go behind my back and do the thing I explicitly asked you not to do. Do you have any idea how dangerous that was Louis? Zayn is on to us now, and he’s on a warpath. You put us all in danger.” 

Liam can tell that Louis is still trying to look unaffected, but he can see the emotion stirring in his eyes. “That’s a bit hypocritical isn’t it Liam? You’re the one who thought it was a good idea to sleep with him, to further the cause right? Is that what you were doing last night, or was it something else? You sure you weren't putting us all at risk, just so you could play house with Zayn?” 

Niall has stopped eating, now he’s just swiveling his gaze back and forth between the two of them as if he’s watching a tennis match. Liam holds Louis’ angry glare for a few more minutes before he finally gives in and drops his head down onto the desk in front of him. It’s not much unlike the way he was sitting in Zayn’s office not long ago, but unsurprisingly it’s not making him feel any better now either. 

It’s a few more minutes before he hears Louis speak again, but there seems to be a lot less anger in his voice. Now it just sounds like sadness. “Li, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. You know I can never hold me tongue when it counts.” Liam slowly lifts his gaze back up to his friend, he really does look sorry. Liam wishes that made him feel better, not worse. “It’s fine Lou. I shouldn’t have attacked you like that. You’re right, I’ve fucked this whole thing up and now I don’t know what to do about it.” 

Louis reaches over and grabs one of his hands while Niall silently takes the other. “That’s the whole point Li, you don’t have to do it alone.” Niall is nodding by his side. “He’s right mate, we’re not going anywhere. Although, just for the record I did tell him that hacking Zayn was a fucking stupid idea.” Louis uses the hand that’s not holding Liam’s to flick Niall on the forehead. “Oh, hush you still went along with it.” 

Liam shakes his head at them fondly as the squabble. “Look Louis, I get it. You were trying to prove a point, but don’t you think that was a little strong? I mean, I’m assuming you wanted Zayn to know it was you that hacked him right?” Louis snorts, “as if he would know any other way. But that’s the whole point Li. I think maybe we’ve been going about this the wrong way. Maybe instead of just sitting by and waiting for him to slip-up we should be attacking him instead, constantly reminding him that we’re not just going to roll-over.” Liam sits back in his chair as he ponders that. “Ok, so that’s not the worst idea you’ve ever had.” 

Niall looks at them both incredulously. “Wait, you’re actually going along with this? Have you both lost your minds? Zayn started this war, who’s to say he doesn’t have more tricks already planned for us?” Louis pops another grape in his mouth before responding. “Exactly Ni. If he’s too busy trying to dodge our bullets then maybe it will distract him from whatever attack he’s planning next.” 

Niall is shaking his head in disbelief as he pushes himself off the desk and gathers the trash from his lunch. “You’re absolutely insane. And even after all these years, I still can’t figure out why I haven’t run for the hills.” 

Louis lobs another grape at him and smirks, “because you know you can’t live without the chaos.” Liam sighs, that statement applies to his life much more than he would care to admit.

 


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Thanks as always for all of your support on this fic. I am so attached to this AU, you guys have no idea! :)  
> I decided to write this chapter from Louis' POV. I really want to tell this story from every angle. The next few chapters will probably be back to Liam's POV, but I do want to get more into Zayn's side of things too. As always I'd love to know what you think!
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Louis flicks a paper clip sitting on the desktop in front of him and watches absently as it takes flight through the air only to be stopped by the thick cement basement wall it eventually slams into. Working in the basement of the Malik Industries’ building isn’t as awful as Louis initially thought it would be. It’s usually pretty quiet down here since they’re mostly cut off and isolated from the rest of the company. It’s especially quiet now, which is probably to be expected since it’s half past eight. Nearly everyone else has gone home for the night. The only noise Louis hears is the faint whirring of a vacuum a few doors down. He’s a little surprised Zayn even bothers having this dungeon cleaned if he’s honest.

Louis never liked Zayn, not from the second that Liam introduced them. Liam had always written it off as jealousy on Louis’ part. He and Louis had met at Uni and had been instant best mates, long before Liam had gone off to Google for his internship where he eventually met Zayn. Ok, so maybe Louis had been a tiny bit jealous at the way that Liam would go on and on about how funny, smart, and generally wonderful Zayn was all the time. But honestly, that kind of blubbering would drive anyone mad eventually. 

Ultimately, jealousy wasn’t actually the reason Louis didn’t like him though. It took him several years to finally put his finger on it, but now that he has he wishes he would have done more to keep Liam away from him. Maybe things would have gone differently, maybe they wouldn’t be in this bloody mess they find themselves in now. Or maybe it wouldn’t have made any difference at all. 

See that’s the point. Liam has always been a moth to Zayn’s very dangerous flame, he just can’t stay away even if it means it will destroy him. _And Zayn knows it_. That’s the part that makes Louis’ blood boil. Zayn knows very well the effect he has on Liam, knows he only has to bat his eyelashes and whisper in his ear before Liam is putty in his hands. And Zayn clearly has no problems using it to his advantage. 

Louis knew straight away when Liam suggested sleeping with Zayn to get leverage, that it was all going to go down hill in spectacular flames. Once again, he should have done more to stop it. _But he didn’t_. He had joked earlier with Niall, saying he couldn’t stay away from their crazy schemes because he loves the chaos. He hadn’t been entirely joking is the thing. The three of them have created a lot of chaos together over the years, it’s probably the reason their stupid company is so successful honestly. But the thing is, Zayn and Harry are their own brand of chaos and when you add them into the mix you get a very nasty chemical reaction. 

_Harry_. He’s a whole other can of worms in this saga that Louis hadn’t anticipated. He had looked so eerily familiar when he had approached Louis in the bar on that fateful night a few weeks ago. Louis figures that there was probably part of him that knew exactly who Harry was, but he didn’t want to admit it. _He didn’t want to face it_. It had just felt so damn good to let go for once and just be with someone because he wanted to. He had loved giggling to Harry’s horribly lame jokes, and the way his hair had felt so soft beneath his fingers as he ran them through the long curls. The whole night had felt like a beautifully blurred dream. That’s the problem with dreams though, they have to end eventually. 

He’ll never forget that awful feeling he had at the pit of his stomach, a toxic mixture of pain and regret, as Harry stumbled through his apology the next morning. He had looked genuinely sorry is the thing, but it doesn’t matter. Whether he actually regrets it or he’s the world’s greatest actor, Louis doesn’t care. _He just has to remind himself of that sometimes_.  It is actual torture having to work side-by-side with Harry every day. Not only does it make him angry all over again, but it also reminds him why he fell for Harry that night. _Stupid brain_. That’s why he tries not to blame Liam too much for falling for Zayn’s trap all over again. He really wishes Liam wouldn’t, don’t get him wrong. But he does get it. 

Suddenly his attention snaps back to his laptop when he sees movement on the screen. Harry has logged on and is composing an email. Louis had started monitoring Harry and Zayn’s digital activity ever since the day Harry had stumbled apologetically out of his flat. He never told Liam about it because he was hoping he would be able to clean up this bloody mess before Liam ever found out. Unfortunately, it hadn’t turned out that way. Louis knows he probably should have told him right after Zayn made the announcement about the app becoming a joint project between the two companies, but it had just never seemed like the right time.

And then of course there was the fact that Liam was so strongly against hacking Zayn. He had been so angry when Louis had purposely left a trail for Zayn to find. Louis just didn’t have the heart to tell him he had been doing it for weeks. Liam really should have known though, Niall had guessed it straight away. But Liam always tries to see the best in everyone, it’s annoyingly endearing. Louis’ mother had said one time that his hacking would either destroy him or be the greatest key to his success. Little did she know that it would be both. 

Louis watches as Harry’s email forms on the screen in front of him. Sure this method is a little invasive, but it will be a cold day in Hell before Louis feels sorry for either Harry or Zayn. He quickly scans through the email before Harry hits send.

To: [_zmalik@malikindustries.com_](mailto:zmalik@malikindustries.com)

From: [_hstyles@malikindustries.com_](mailto:hstyles@malikindustries.com)

Subject: Follow-up

_Hey Z,_

_Wanted to follow up with you on the conversation we had in your office this morning. I think it’s very important that we continue it. We have to start doing things differently._

_H_

Louis furrows his brows as he finishes reading the message. He’s read many of Harry’s emails over the last few weeks, and none of them have looked quite like this. They’re usually loaded with exclamation points and smiley face emoticons. Whatever the hell Harry is talking about, it must be serious. It’s only a few minutes later that he sees Zayn composing his own message.

To: [_hstyles@malikindustries.com_](mailto:hstyles@malikindustries.com)

From: [_zmalik@malikindustries.com_](mailto:zmalik@malikindustries.com)

Subject: Re: Follow-up

_Hey H,_

_You should already know I’m not doing this over email. Talk tomorrow._

_Z_

Louis sits up straighter in his chair, this is certainly getting interesting. He’s read several emails back and forth between Harry and Zayn, and although Harry’s are usually much more cheerful in contrast he’s never seen Zayn this cold. He barely has time to dwell on it before he sees another email from Harry.

To: [_zmalik@malikindustries.com_](mailto:zmalik@malikindustries.com)

From: [_hstyles@malikindustries.com_](mailto:hstyles@malikindustries.com)

Subject: Re: Re: Follow-up

_Maybe we wouldn’t have to do this over email if you would answer your phone. We’re talking about this tomorrow or else I’m out Z, I mean it._

_H_

Louis waits for a response from Zayn, but there doesn’t seem to be one. It looks as if they’ve both gone offline. He wonders absently what could possible have Harry so worked up, he’s normally Mr. calm and collected. He gets startled from his thoughts by his phone vibrating on his desk. It’s a group text from Liam to him and Niall.

Liam: Hey Lou. Ni and I are going to the pub, you in? 

Louis sighs at his phone. He really should be getting out of here, it’s starting to get creepy in the abandoned basement. But he’s just not in the mood for banter and a few pints. At least if Liam’s with Niall it means he’s not with Zayn. _That is a very good thing_.

Louis: Just finishing up at the office. U guys go ahead. Maybe I’ll try to join.

Niall: Wow Lou is the responsible one now? Are we in an alternate dimension?

Liam: Seriously Lou, come out with us :(

Louis: Just let me have this one night to pretend to be responsible, then I’ll go back to being a mess. Promise <3

Liam: Fine, but you’re buying the first round next time.

Niall: Agreed.

Louis: I always buy the first round because u guys are too cheap.

Liam: Rude.

Niall: Super rude.

Louis: Have fun boys, and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do. x

Niall: Have fun being boring! x

Liam: Night night Lou, see you in the basement tomorrow. x

Louis locks his phone screen and starts loading his laptop into his bag. He’d love nothing more right now than to go home and fall into bed. He’s about to sling his bag over his shoulder when he hears a deep voice behind him. “I had a feeling you’d still be here.” Louis nearly falls out of his chair in shock before he finally turns around. Harry is still wearing those ridiculous pin striped pants he was wearing earlier, but now they’re slightly wrinkled and he looks significantly more exhausted. 

Louis takes a deep breath in an attempt to calm his wildly beating heart. “Jesus Harry, didn’t anyone ever tell you not to sneak up on a guy in an empty basement?” Harry chuckles lightly, but he does look a little sheepish. “Sorry. I was on my way out of the building and I just decided to come down and see if you were still here.” Louis nods. “Was just trying to work out the glitches we’re having on the home menu.” He raises his brows slightly at Harry. “What has you here so late?” _Maybe sending passive-aggressive emails to Zayn?_ Harry shrugs noncommittally, “just trying to make sure I have everything in order. It looks like we’re a few weeks behind on the launch date.” 

Louis contemplates that for a moment. I _s that what he was so upset with Zayn about?_ It seemed like whatever they were arguing about, it was something much bigger than a deadline. He looks back to Harry, “and how does Zayn feel about that?” Harry shrugs again, “he says it’s not a big deal. Thinks we can smooth it over in branding.” Louis stands from his chair and grabs his bag. “Well isn’t that just very zen of him.” Harry laughs then, a real laugh that seems to overtake his entire body. “Yeah for once, Zayn is the calmer of the two of us. Must be a full moon or something.” He pauses for a moment, as if he’s considering something. “Can I walk you out?” 

Louis nods silently and prays that he’s not blushing. _Why does stupid Harry have to be such a bloody gentleman?_ They ride the elevator together in silence. Once they step outside Louis takes a deep breath of the crisp London air. He likes being out at night, it calms him for some reason. Harry turns to him then, “you want a ride?” Louis almost says yes, but stops himself at the last second. “No, thanks. I’m just going to take the tube.” Harry pauses for a few seconds before finally nodding. “Alright then, see you tomorrow.” Louis waves as he watches him disappear in the direction of the parking garage. 

_That was close_. He needs to stay level headed right now, and going home with Harry would definitely not be the way to do that. He can’t afford to make the same mistakes as Liam.

_But, God does he want to_.

 


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Oh look, I'm finally updating. Sorry, this took so long. Just still trying to figure out where I want this to go. As always I'd really love to hear what you think and if you have any suggestions! :)
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam rolls his eyes as he watches Niall attempt to teach some random girl he just met how to play pool. Niall is pressed behind her as he attempts to guide her hand on the pool stick. The girl giggles as she misses the ball all together. They’re both laughably awful, but Liam figures that’s not the point. Liam had been a little reluctant at first when Niall had encouraged him to come out tonight, but he’s actually quite happy that he did. Watching Niall’s painful flirt game is slightly taking his mind off of his own disastrous love life. Actually, using the term _love_ might not be entirely accurate. It’s more like his disastrous life with a little bit of sex and a whole lot of Zayn mixed-in. 

He sighs at the nearly empty pint sitting on the bar in front of him. He almost doesn’t notice when someone sits next to him, but the scent of a floral perfume just this side of too sweet makes him look over. The stool next to him is now occupied by a girl probably around Liam’s age. Her brunette hair is pulled up into a bun with just a few strands falling down to frame her face and show off just a few hints of makeup. She’s a simple kind of pretty and Liam can’t help but smile back when she gives a light wave. 

She orders a Vodka soda from the bartender before turning to Liam. “So I’m guessing someone as gorgeous as you is taken?” Liam snorts, but can’t help but let out a laugh at her brash question. He taps his fingertips on the bar top for a few seconds contemplating his answer. _He doesn’t even know how to respond to pickup lines anymore, bloody hell_. “It’s kind of complicated actually.” She holds her glass up in a salute and doesn’t even wait for Liam to cheers her before she downs it in one go. She nods at Liam after putting her glass back down. “Yeah I figured, can’t blame a girl for trying though can you?” 

Liam laughs along with her. “No, I certainly can’t.” He tilts his head in Niall’s direction, “actually since my mate ditched me I really wouldn’t mind the company.” She laughs in response, “that’s my friend Jessica. Looks like we’re both on our own mate, I’m Natalie by the way.” Liam takes her outstretched hand and shakes it. “Nice to meet you Natalie, I’m Liam. Also, I apologize for Niall in advance. He can be an idiot sometimes.” Natalie laughs as she glances back over at the pair. “Well he and Jessica might be the perfect match then.”

They both order fresh drinks when the bartender comes back over and then spend a few minutes sipping in comfortable silence. Finally Natalie puts down her drink and turns back to Liam. “I have an idea, why don’t you tell me about your complicated situation and I’ll see if I can one-up you.” Her sly smirk is contagious and Liam can’t help but grin back. He has to admit, pouring his heart out to a stranger in a bar might actually be therapeutic and it sure beats watching Niall fail at pool all night. Liam nods, “alright but just remember that you’re the one who asked to hear about it.” She lets out a laugh and places one of her elbows on the bar so that she can prop her head on her hand as she waits for Liam to start the story.

Liam sighs, “ok so there was this guy.” He pauses for a second to gauge her reaction, but all she does is raise her eyebrows slightly before nodding at him to continue. “Right, so we had this thing a few years ago when we used to work together. I guess you would call it a relationship, I don’t actually know. Basically, we were together all the time and I spent a lot of nights at his place if you know what I mean. That was until he let me take the fall for something that we were both responsible for, just so he could get a promotion.” 

Liam pauses as Natalie signals to the bartender for another drink before turning back to him. She smiles apologetically, “sorry had a feeling I was going to need another one for the rest of this story.” Liam laughs and gets himself another drink as well, “good call.” After they have both taken a few sips of their new drinks he continues, “so after that we both left to start our own companies and I could just kind of pretend he didn’t exist right? That was until about a week ago when he forced our two companies to work together on this project that was supposed to be mine.”

Natalie holds her hand up signaling him to stop, “wait. What do you mean he ‘forced you?” Liam thinks for a few seconds. While he highly doubts that Natalie is some kind of spy or an undercover detective or something, he should still probably tread lightly. “Let’s just say he knows a few things that I’d rather not have public.” Natalie nods, “sounds like a snake.” Liam laughs, “yeah but unfortunately looks like an angel.” Natalie slaps her hand over her mouth in an over-exaggerated way. “Wait, did you sleep with him? I mean, did you sleep with him recently, after the blackmail?” Liam sighs at her wide-eyed expression. He was really hoping it wouldn’t sound so ridiculous when he said it out loud. 

He massages his temples lightly with his fingertips before turning back to her. “I did mention that it was complicated didn’t I?” She laughs incredulously for a few seconds before pausing, “holy shit.” Liam nods solemnly, “indeed.” They sit in silence for a few minutes before Liam speaks again. “Please tell me you have a story that will make me feel better?” Natalie laughs before leaning over to pat him consolingly on the knee, “sorry mate. I think you might have me beat there.” 

Liam sighs again before folding his arms on top of each other on the bar and resting his head on them. “Ok, so as an objective third party here… what do you think I should do?” He watches as Natalie contemplates that for awhile. “Well, I guess my first question would be what do you want to do?” Liam furrows his brows in response. “But that’s my whole dilemma? I’m in a constant struggle of wanting him to either ravish me or be wiped from the face of the earth.” Natalie laughs, “wow really vivid imagery there.” Liam laughs too, “sorry. I might be a little bit drunk actually.” Natalie nods as she lifts her drink towards him, “Same. So I might not be the most qualified to give advice right now, but the way I see it is you’re just letting yourself get too caught up in what you _should_ do and not what you _want_ to do.” Liam takes a few seconds to let his slightly jumbled brain process that, “ok I get what you’re saying. But what if what I want hurts other people?” 

Natalie runs her fingertip along the rim of her glass for a while before she answers. Liam figures her brain is probably taking a little extra time to process too. Finally she looks back to Liam, “well then maybe you need to find some kind of compromise. Like maybe there is actually a way that you could be with this guy without giving up your company or your morals or whatever? Or maybe it’s just that you’re thinking of everything the way it was before, you know like before he sold you out and stole your project? Maybe that guy from the past is the one you’re in love with and this new guy is just a way to pass the time, you know?” 

Liam nods slowly, even though he’s not entirely sure that he understands the question. “Ok, so what are you suggesting exactly?” Natalie shrugs noncommittally, “I’m not entirely sure. I think I’m drunk.” Liam is about to respond when his phone lights up on the bar in front of them. They both swivel their eyes to his phone which is displaying a text from Zayn. Natalie’s eyes widen slightly, “is that him?” Liam nods as he reaches forward to unlock his phone so that the full text displays. 

Zayn: Hey, u busy?

Natalie leans forward until she couldn’t possibly get any closer without rubbing her face on Liam’s phone. “Oh my god, he’s booty calling you! What are you going to do?” Liam stares at his phone in disbelief for a few minutes. Sure this has been Zayn’s pattern for the last few days, waiting until it’s late and Liam’s vulnerable to text him. But he had seemed so angry in his office this morning when he found out about Louis’ hacking. _Has something changed, or is it a trap?_

He suddenly realizes that Natalie is shaking his shoulder lightly. “Liam, are you ok? What are you going to do?” He glances back at his phone for a minute, “I don’t know.” He sees Natalie’s eyes soften slightly and her tone becomes more gentle when she speaks, “what do you _want_ to do Liam?” Liam groans, partly because he doesn’t like the answer, and partly because he doesn’t know how to say it out loud. So he decides to just dance around the answer instead. “But I don’t want to just leave you, and I can’t leave Niall.” Natalie pats his shoulder. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. Jessica and I have a friend coming to pick us up in 15 minutes, and I’ll make sure Niall gets home safe too I promise.”

Liam stares into her eyes for a few minutes, and they seem absolutely nothing but genuine. He sighs reluctantly. “Ok, but I definitely owe you one.” Natalie laughs and they quickly trade numbers, “I plan on holding you to that Liam.” She grabs his arm just before he’s about to head for the door. “Just promise me you’ll try to find a way to be happy, yeah?” Liam nods, “that’s the plan.”

Liam waits until he’s safely in a cab before he texts Zayn back.

Liam: I’ll be at yours in 20. Good?

The response is almost immediate. 

Zayn: Ace. See you soon.

Liam leans back in his seat. He’s not exactly sure if this is the right way to find happiness or not, then again maybe he shouldn’t be taking advice from strangers in a bar after 11pm in the first place. Either way, it seems like a good idea right now in this moment.

And right now is all he has, right?

 


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my goodness... we're almost to 300 kudos on this fic?! That's amazing!! Thank you so much once again for all of your love and support on this story. Whenever I feel like I don't know where I'm going with this your comments and ideas always give me direction. I tried to make this chapter a little bit longer for you guys, and I hope you'll find it at least a little bit satisfying! :) 
> 
> As always I'd love to know what you think!
> 
> Thanks for reading! x
> 
> P.S.: there's quite a bit of gratuitous smut in this chapter :)

Maybe there’s no such thing as ‘predictable.’ Maybe as humans we just think we know what’s going to happen to us when in reality we actually have no clue. Maybe Liam should be smarter, or maybe it all depends on how you look at it. 

Liam’s been standing in front of Zayn’s door for a solid five minutes before he finally decides to knock. He hears a bit of shuffling from the other side of the door and then the sound of bare feet on hardwood before it finally swings open. Zayn’s only wearing a pair of loose basketball shorts that are sitting dangerously low on his hips. Pair that with his glasses perched on the bridge of his nose and his perfectly mussed hair and Liam wants to practically fall on his knees in the hallway. _Focus_. 

Zayn doesn’t say anything, just smiles at him before turning around to head further inside his flat and gestures to Liam to follow. Liam expects him to lead them to the lounge but instead he guides Liam into the kitchen. Liam’s never really been in here, just glanced at it through the doorway over the last few days. He looks around as he takes a seat at one of the stools near the kitchen island. It’s not the fanciest kitchen he’s ever seen, but it’s simple and chic. _Very Zayn_. 

Liam watches as Zayn opens one of his overhead cabinets and grabs out two mugs. He glances over at Liam as he’s already putting the kettle on his stove, “cuppa?” Liam nods absently as he mindlessly studies the marble countertop in front of him. “You ask me over here at midnight for a cup of tea Z?” Zayn chuckles lightly before he circles the island so that he can position himself directly behind Liam’s stool. Liam can no longer see him, but he can feel Zayn’s warm breath on his neck as he answers. “No Li, I asked you over here so I could fuck you.” Liam feels his breath involuntarily stutter as Zayn’s lips attach lazily to his neck while his fingers slip under his jumper. _Correction, Zayn’s jumper_. It takes Liam’s brain a few seconds to process that Zayn is still talking. “Isn’t that why you came Liam? So I could take care of you? Make you beg for more.” That last part wasn’t a question, but Liam wouldn’t have been able to answer even if he wanted to. Zayn’s hand has now snaked it’s way down the front of his pants and he’s having difficulty breathing. 

They both jump at the screeching sound that emits from the long-forgotten kettle on the stove. Zayn gives Liam one last maddening kiss on the neck before he pulls his hands away to attend to their tea. Liam can’t help but whine at the loss of contact. Zayn has that stupid smirk on his face as he pours the tea into the waiting mugs. It’s weird that he can be so calm, like he didn’t just almost jerk Liam off in his own kitchen. But then again, nothing about this really makes any sense at all. _Zayn was so upset this morning, what the hell changed?_

Zayn walks back over to Liam and sits on the stool next to him after passing him his mug. Liam peers into the mug in front of him trying to decide what it is. The other man shakes his head fondly after watching him. “It’s chamomile Li, not a snake.” Liam looks back up at him, “how do I know it’s not drugged?” Zayn just stares at him for a while as if he’s trying to decide if Liam’s serious or not. He finally huffs out a light breath, “I think we both know that would be a little unnecessary don’t we?” Liam raises his eyebrows in response. “I don’t know, do we?” 

Zayn puts his mug back down on the counter and when he looks back at Liam his eyes have gotten significantly darker, they’ve now reached the color that always seems to make Liam’s pulse start to race. Zayn leans closer when he answers. “You’re the one that came aren’t you?” Zayn always knows how to challenge him, knows exactly what to say to make it impossible for Liam to say no. Liam knows that, probably has always known that. But he’s been going about it all wrong lately, instead of fighting against it maybe he should be using it to his advantage. 

Zayn is still studying him closely, waiting for an answer probably. But Liam has already decided he isn’t going to give him one. Instead he pushes his mug further away from him on the counter and grabs Zayn’s hand, “dance with me?” Zayn raises his eyebrows, in question or surprise Liam’s not sure, but he still nods his consent and that’s all that Liam needs. He leads Zayn into his own lounge where he already knows is a state-of-the art sound system. He thrusts his phone into Zayn’s free hand, “connect me to your bluetooth?” Zayn rolls his eyes playfully but still does what Liam asks, _just like he knew he would_.

Liam looks down at his phone when Zayn hands it back to him. He tries to keep his face neutral as he opens his music app, not only has Zayn connected him to his speaker but the wifi as well. _Perfect_. Liam quickly clicks on a song and throws his phone onto Zayn’s couch as soon as the first note carries through the speaker. He wasn’t even paying attention to what song it was, but it has a strong bass and a sexy tone and that’s all they need really. He figures they probably aren’t going to be listening for much longer anyway, that is if the way that Zayn’s grip is tightening on his hips is any indication. 

Liam lets himself get lost in it for a minute. Revels in the way that Zayn’s body just feels so damn good pressed against his own. He really wishes it was that simple, _unfortunately it’s not_. It’s not long before their ‘dancing’ has quickly turned into grinding with a lot of open mouthed kisses and tongue. Zayn pulls his mouth away from Liam’s so that he can press his lips to the shell of his ear, his hands still steady on his hips. “Bedroom, now.” Liam gives a somewhat uncoordinated nod of his head as Zayn is already taking his hand and starting to pull him down the hallway. 

Once they reach Zayn’s room Liam expects to be pushed onto the bed, but he feels his back collide with the wall instead. It’s the one that separates Zayn’s room from the master bath, _the same one he leaned against the other morning when he heard Zayn crying in the shower_. He shouldn’t have been surprised really, Zayn’s always had a weird thing for wall sex. Liam would be lying if he said he didn’t like it too though. 

His mouth lets out a shuddering breath without his brain’s approval when he feels Zayn’s fingers fumbling with the buttons on his jeans. Mercifully Zayn makes quick work of it, pulling down his jeans and pants all in one go. Liam kicks off his shoes and pants and pulls his jumper over his head as he watches Zayn rid himself of his own clothes as well. It’s almost like he’s watching the whole thing in slow motion, as if he’s watching a sequence in a movie. _Or a nightmare_. 

It isn’t long before Zayn’s body is once again pressing against his own. His lips are sucking bruising marks into Liam’s collarbone as his fingers are rubbing agonizingly slow circles into his hips, and Liam can’t take it any longer. He reaches up to bury his fingers into Zayn’s short dark hair and pulls roughly. “Zayn, god.. please.” Liam can feel Zayn smirking, his lips still pressed to Liam’s skin, and he wants to kill him really he does. Zayn attaches his lips to the side of Liam’s neck, leaving one more mark. That one’s going to be nearly impossible to hide and Zayn knows it, _possessive asshole_. 

Those thoughts are soon flushed from Liam’s mind as Zayn reaches over to the side table near them and grabs the half-empty bottle of lube and the condom that are already sitting there. Zayn quickly rips open the foil packet and rolls the condom onto his length, and then the sound of the lube cap popping open makes the tiny hairs on the back of Liam’s neck stand up. Zayn coats the fingers of one of his hands with it while he uses the other to grab one of Liam’s legs and then hitch it up to wrap around his hip. Liam reaches his arms up to Zayn’s neck and wraps them tightly. He’s so busy making sure he has a stable grip that he almost doesn’t notice that one of Zayn’s slicked up fingers is already circling his hole, _almost_. 

Liam feels his own head fall back against the wall behind him as Zayn’s finger slowly sinks in to the second knuckle. He has entered a second finger and is scissoring them apart quite easily before he taps his free hand on Liam’s other thigh, prompting him to wrap that leg around his waist as well. It takes a little bit of careful maneuvering, but he gets it eventually. Zayn is now the only thing from preventing him from falling on his face, _he has no control_. At some point Zayn has added a third finger and he’s now using his other hand along with his own body weight to push Liam a little further up the wall. The hard unforgiving surface behind him is pressing roughly against his spine, but Liam can’t help but let out a loud moan as Zayn’s fingers brush against that delicious spot inside of him. 

Zayn’s lips are back to kissing his collarbone, but the movements have become much more uncoordinated than they were before. He pulls away barely just enough to mumble into Liam’s skin, “ready babe? Want me to ruin you?” Liam just nods desperately, because he probably couldn’t form words if he even tried. Thankfully Zayn seems to accept that as an answer because he pulls his fingers out and begins coating the condom with the lube still left on his hand. Liam barely has time to whimper at the loss before he feels Zayn’s hard length pressing against his entrance. 

It’s takes his brain a second to realize that Zayn’s not moving, he’s just holding them there suspended in time. His forces his somewhat un-focused eyes on Zayn’s face, and he seems to be waiting for something. Finally, Liam lets out what can only be described as the combination of moans and words all at once. “Z… please…need.” It’s not even a coherent sentence, but it seems to do the trick. Zayn begins pushing in slowly. Once he’s inside all the way their chests are nearly pressed flush against each other, and Liam lets his head fall forward until it rests against Zayn’s shoulder.

It’s not long before Zayn has built up a steady rhythm. Liam can practically already see the red marks that must be forming on his back and shoulders as a result of the force that is being used to shove him against the wall, but he really can’t be bothered to care at this point. His legs have already started to ache as well from the awkward position, but the pain seems to make it all feel that much better somehow. That’s something he’s probably going to have to think about later, _but not now_. 

He can feel that warm feeling building up in the pit of his stomach, and he knows he’s not going to last much longer. He groans against Zayn’s shoulder in warning, “Zayn… close.” Zayn hums in response as he slips one of his hands between their bodies to grip Liam’s length. “That’s good babe, come for me. So good.” Liam’s not really sure what it is exactly that pushes him over the edge. Maybe it’s the friction, or the praise, or the pain, but it makes him come so hard that he can see little pin-pricks of light dancing around the edge of his vision. Zayn is quick to follow, probably his body’s response to Liam’s muscles clenching tightly around his length.

They stay like that for a little bit longer, both just panting into the other’s skin before Zayn presses one of his hands against the wall to steady them. Liam expects Zayn to help him down, but instead he keeps Liam’s legs wrapped tightly around his waist and sort of shakily carries him over to the bed. He leans down slowly to deposit Liam on the mattress and waits until he’s settled to pull out of him slowly. Liam can’t help but wince slightly at the overstimulation. He watches as Zayn disappears into the bathroom, before quickly returning. The condom has disappeared and he’s now holding a damp flannel.

He doesn’t say anything, just silently cleans them both up before tossing the rag into a corner of the room before turning off the lights and climbing into bed next to Liam. He feels a soft kiss on his forehead before Zayn rolls over to his other side. Liam closes his eyes and makes sure to make his breathing deep and even. Eventually he hears Zayn’s breathes match his own, but he waits a little longer just to be sure. Once he’s convinced that Zayn really is asleep and not faking he very gently pushes himself out of bed. 

He makes a face at the slight ache in the backside, but decides to ignore it. He turns back to the bed and watches the outline of Zayn’s sleeping form in the dark. It appears that he’s still dead to the world, _good_. Liam does his best to quickly and quietly gather his clothes off the floor where they were abandoned earlier before stealthily slipping out the door. He makes his way down the hall and into Zayn’s lounge. He tugs on his clothes and shoes before he grabs for his phone that’s still waiting on Zayn’s couch where he left it. 

He quickly taps out a text. 

Liam: Did you get it?

Louis: Yeah. Was super easy to get his wifi password as soon as he connected ur phone. Gives us a lot more access now. Don’t really want to know what u had to do to get him to do that mate. 

Liam shakes his head in the dark as he writes a response.

Liam: No you really don’t. Talk in the morning. 

Louis: Kk. Be safe love.

Liam: Of course, night. 

Louis: Night Li. <3

Liam glances back towards the direction of Zayn’s bedroom as he carefully slips out the front door. Maybe he can’t end the game just yet, but he can certainly change the rules. After all, predictability is overrated.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was in a bit of a weird mood when I wrote this, and it just sort of took on a life of its own. Ha!
> 
> Thanks again for reading! x


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry it took me a few extra days to get this update out, just wanted to figure out exactly where I wanted to go with this. I really do feel like I say this every time, but you all are just so lovely! Thank you so much for your love and support on this fic!! I wanted to do something a little different in this chapter, so it's from Harry's POV. I really want to get at this story from all angles.
> 
> As always I'd really love to know what you think!
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

It’s only 8am and Harry is already 100% done with today. He’s been standing in line in this coffee shop for less than two minutes and he’s already trying desperately not to roll his eyes at the lady ordering in front of him who can’t decide if she wants a caramel or a chocolate frappuccino. _They both have equally ridiculous amounts of sugar, what does it even matter?_ Finally, after another few more agonizing minutes the woman makes her decision and shuffles out of the way so that Harry can step up to the counter. He quickly greets the barista and then rattles off his order without pause: black coffee with one sugar and no cream for Zayn, Chai latte with almond milk for himself, and a chocolate chip scone. 

Harry moves off to the side and quickly glances through the notifications on his phone as he waits for his order to be finished. _No messages from Zayn_. Getting coffee for Zayn has become so automatic for him over the last few years that he just went ahead and did it before he could remember that he’s actually mad at him. Harry loves him, he really does, but he’s being a stubborn pain in the arse right now. Harry knew that trying to hijack Double L Technologies’ latest project was going to be a horrific nightmare, but in the end he hadn’t been able to convince Zayn. Not from a lack of trying though, _so why does he still feel so guilty_?

He’s pulled out of his thoughts by the sound of his name being called over the hum of the morning coffee rush. He expertly balances the two paper coffee cups in one hand as he reaches for the pastry bag with the other. He’s lucky he only ordered two drinks or he would probably need more hands. Suddenly a thought hits him as he’s pushing out the front door with his arms full, maybe he should have ordered something for Louis as well? Although he probably would have just declined anyway. 

Louis hasn’t been super receptive to just about anything Harry has had to say over the last few days, _not that he really blames him_. There is the whole sleeping with him to get information thing, although that’s not entirely what happened. Louis doesn’t know everything, but some things are just too hard to explain without bringing up other worse topics.

Harry does his best to shuffle around the many other people on the pavement who are trying to push their way to work. Luckily, the coffee shop is only around the corner from the Malik Industries’ building. Before Harry can even reposition the things in his arms so that he can reach for the door it’s already being pushed open. Bob greets him with a large smile, and Harry does his best to try to reciprocate. Aside from Harry and Zayn himself, Bob has been with the company longer than any other employee. He’s a great security guard, and Harry’s not sure if he’s ever seen him without a smile on his face. 

Harry follows Bob back to his desk and sets the mugs down. He hands Bob the bag containing the scone so that he can swipe his badge and walk through the security checkpoint. Bob takes the bag gratefully with yet another huge smile. “Thanks man, but as I’ve told you before I really don’t need one of these everyday.” Harry smiles, it’s always the same argument every time. “I know you don’t _need_ one Bob, but that’s not the same as not _wanting_ one.” Bob chuckles, “yeah tell that to my waistline.” 

Harry smirks and takes a sip of his latte. “Any security concerns I should know about?” He watches as something different passes across Bob’s face. It’s looks like a mixture of worry and fear, _and Harry doesn’t like it_. It takes a few minutes for the security guard to say anything, as if he is trying to work it out in his head first. “Yeah actually, I’ve been trying to get a hold of Zayn but he hasn’t been answering his phone. You were going to be my next call, right before you walked in.” Harry does his best to hold in the sigh that’s threatening to escape from his mouth. He can already tell he’s really not going to like this. He takes a deep breath, “what is it Bob?” Bob glances from the screen of his laptop in front of him back up to Harry. “Someone got access to Zayn’s wifi last night.” Harry lets out the breath he didn’t even realize he had been holding. 

Bob wasn’t just in charge of monitoring the people who physically go in and out of the building everyday, he handles their cyber security as well. It had been Harry’s idea when they first started, and although Zayn had been reluctant at first he had eventually given in. It was a little unorthodox sure, but it had turned out to be highly effective. Seeing the daily comings and goings of the building helped Bob get a clearer picture on what was happening on their networks as well. Not to mention that Bob had been the ultimate candidate for the job. He had once done cyber security for the military which gave him both the physical and technological skills to not only do the job, but do it extremely well. 

Harry tries to focus back to what Bob was saying. “What do you mean someone got in, they hacked him?” That didn’t seem very likely, both Harry and Zayn’s home networks were highly secure Bob had made sure of it. Bob shakes his head, “no not entirely." Harry sets his latte back on Bob’s desk so that he can rub his temples with his fingers. This is starting to turn into a riddle that he really doesn’t want to solve. Bob seems to sense his frustration so he pushes on. “I haven’t uncovered all the details yet, but it looks as if Zayn gave an unknown device access to his network and then they or someone else who had access to that device discovered the password from the inside out.” 

Harry shakes his head incredulously, “do you have an IP address for the device?” He feels his heart sink as he sees Bob’s head shake. “Not yet, it’s highly encrypted. Whoever did it knew we’d be curious.” Harry sighs once again, “well it will be pretty easy to narrow it down once we can ask Zayn who’s device he let onto his network. Why would he do that? Who the hell would be so important that he would…” Harry lets the question die off as the pieces start to fall together in his head. _Liam, bloody hell_. 

He glances back to Bob to see that he’s studying him closely. “I’m guessing you answered your own question, then?” Harry shakes his head, “no just a hunch really.” _A damn good hunch_. Bob seems to be wrestling with the thoughts inside his head again. “I’ve been avoiding asking this because I really didn’t want to know, but it seems to be relevant now that we have an immediate security threat.”

He pauses and Harry nods his head in encouragement. “Liam and the others from his company… I know you all are collaborating on this project, but none of them seem super thrilled to be here. And then the other morning I saw Zayn and Liam get out of a cab together. Zayn had shrugged it off, like usual, but Liam looked sheepish. It was weird, Harry. I tried to convince myself it wasn’t important, but now Zayn is making careless decisions that are very unlike him and I just have to ask if it’s all related?” 

It’s not even lunchtime yet and Harry already wants to go back to bed and pretend this day never happened. Bob is still waiting for an answer. Harry runs a hand through his own hair. This is probably something Zayn should be telling Bob himself, _but Zayn’s not here right now_. “Yeah, I think it is related actually. Zayn and Liam, they… They have a history.” Bob raises his eyebrows in question, but he doesn’t say anything so Harry continues. 

“They used to work together a few years back. I’ll save you the gory details, but basically Zayn used some information from their past to convince Liam to share his company’s new app with us.” Bob just stares at him for a few minutes and Harry is starting to think he might be broken before he finally speaks. “So let me just get this straight… Zayn is practically blackmailing Liam to hand over his latest project while he works right here under all of our noses and neither of you thought it was relevant to mention that?” Bob’s voice hasremained relatively calm, but Harry can tell that he’s getting irritated by the red tint to his checks. 

He sighs, “it wasn’t personal Bob. I was just hoping we could keep the number of people that knew about this to a minimum. Bob shakes his head as he types a few more things into his keyboard, “I get that Haz but seriously I could have been monitoring Liam more closely if I had known. Might have helped us stay ahead of this instead of being forced to play defense.” Harry wrinkles his nose at the analogy, he’s never been very fond of sports. “You’re right, I’m sorry. What can we do now?” 

Bob doesn’t take his eyes from his screen, “well obviously I’m changing Zayn’s password immediately and I’ll make sure that the hacker is fully booted from the network, but that can’t undo the damage that’s already been done. They’ve probably already downloaded everything they could get their hands on by now.” He finally lifts his eyes from his laptop and locks them with Harry’s. “Is there anything else I need to know? Because now would be the time.” 

Harry nervously picks at the hem of his Hawaiian print button down. Finally he looks back to Bob. “Yeah. I’m guessing it was probably Liam’s device that was connected to Zayn’s wifi, but it was more than likely Louis who did the actual hacking.” Bob furrows his brows in confusion. “Louis? You mean the other owner of Double L?” Harry nods his head. “Yeah. He was a career hacker in another life. The only agency that even came close to ever stopping him was the FBI and they eventually decided to just give up and make a truce with him instead of trying to bring him down.” Bob has shifted his attention back to his computer and he’s shaking his head again. Harry’s pretty sure he heard him mumble something along the lines of “and still no one thought I needed to know about this.” 

Harry is about to retort when he hears the front door swing open. He turns to see Louis bounding in looking happier than ever. _Of course_. Louis strolls up to the security checkpoint and scans his badge before walking through. He beams at them both. “Good morning Harry, Bob. Ready to start another wonderful day?” Harry wants very badly to wipe that stupid smirk off his face, _there are other things he wants too but those are thoughts for another day_. He does his best to force a smile. “Of course, can’t wait.” Louis grins back, “heading up to your office?” Harry shakes his head, “not yet. Have a few more things I need to discuss with Bob first. I’ll meet you in about 20?” Louis nods, “sure I can see you’re in the middle of something. I’ll just leave you to your crisis.” He gives Harry a wink and is disappearing into the elevator before he can even register what just happened.

Bob pats his back consolingly. “I hate hackers they’re always so cocky.” Harry sighs, “yeah well I think in this case he has the right to be.” Bob nods, “kinda looks that way yeah.” 

Maybe going back to bed and starting over isn’t such a terrible idea after all.

 


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I know this chapter is short, and I didn't get it out as fast as I wanted too but I wanted you to know I didn't disappear ha! I still want to keep exploring the other POV's of this story but I felt like it was time to get back to Liam for a little bit. Will probably be Zayn and/or Niall next. 
> 
> As always I'd love your thoughts/suggestions! (You're all the best, seriously!). 
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam slaps his hand blindly onto his bedside table in an attempt to stop the horrifying screeching noise that’s emitting from his alarm clock. After what feels like hours of frantic searching his hand finally connects with the snooze button. _Quiet, finally_. He just lays there for a few minutes letting his brain and body re-connect with each other as he comes out of the haze of sleep. It’s not long before the memories of last night start to flood back into his mind. Suddenly he’s wishing it wasn’t so fucking quiet after all, wishes there was some kind of noise that could distract him from remembering. 

He had been in the cab on the way to Zayn’s last night when Louis had called. Liam didn’t think that Niall had really even noticed him leaving the bar, but apparently he had. He had also apparently texted Louis immediately with an SOS. That’s why Louis had called, to try to convince him that it was a stupid idea. But as Liam had listened to one of his best friends begging him to not go crawling back to Zayn again, his mind had been made up. This isn’t just about him anymore, _he needs to stop being so damn selfish_. 

That’s why he decided he needed to start taking things into his own hands. That’s why he asked Louis what he needed to do to give them an advantage. He knew that Louis had already hacked Zayn, had probably been doing it from the very start of whatever the hell this actually is, but it hasn’t really given them an advantage. Louis had confessed that his hacking had only gained minimal entry, he needed to get access to Zayn’s network which seemed to be very well protected. Not that Louis couldn’t do it obviously, it was just that he couldn’t do it quickly or easily. _Unless_ he could get his hands on a device that already had access to the network. That would be an easy in, that would give them everything they needed. _So that’s what Liam decided to do, that’s what he did_. 

He knows that Louis, and probably Niall too, would follow him right into a war zone if he asked them to. He really didn’t want to ask, but they’re already too involved. His only hope is that maybe if he actually works with Louis on this whole hacking Malik Industries’ thing then maybe he’ll be able to control it a little better. Although _having control over Louis_ , is not a combination of words that typically go together. Louis is mischievous at best, and downright diabolical at worst. But like Liam’s mum always says, ‘you can’t fault someone for something in one circumstance, and then praise them for it in the next.’ Louis’ a loose canon, _but he’s Liam’s loose canon_. 

So he made up his mind to fight back against Zayn, but that’s not the end of it. The thing is that Zayn’s still his addiction, whether he likes to admit it or not. He can feel the need to be in Zayn’s space pulse through his own veins. Zayn is like the strongest drug, a hit to his system that makes his knees weak and his heart beat faster. _He craves it_. It’s all very cliche, but unfortunately that doesn’t make it any less true. The thing with addictions is that it’s difficult to quit them cold turkey. Just because his brain has decided it’s done with Zayn’s games it doesn’t mean the rest of him has caught up yet. 

Eventually he moves to roll out of bed because if he stays here too long thinking he’s afraid that his thoughts might actually consume him, like a fire that’s gotten too far out of control to contain. But as he moves to get up he feels a sharp pain shoot up his spine, _yet another reminder of last night_. He closes his eyes as the sound of his own back hitting the wall every time Zayn slammed into him fills his ears. He shakes his head as if the movement could clear the memory from his mind. He needs a shower and the strongest cup of coffee in the world. That won’t make everything go away, but maybe it will make it just a little more bearable. 

He puts off moving for now and instead reaches for his phone to check his emails, but he must have hit something accidentally because music begins playing immediately. The sound is a little tinny pouring out of his tiny phone speakers, but Liam still recognizes the song right away. It's the one he and Zayn were dancing to last night. It's funny how certain songs can so vividly transport you back to another place or time. Last night in Zayn's living room felt like a lifetime ago, but now that the same song is droning against his ears he feels like he’s there now. 

He really did like this song before, but he knows he won't be able to listen to it anymore. Now it's tainted with a memory he’d rather forget. Now the song reminds him of Zayn's hands all over him, his hot breath tickling Liam's neck and setting his skin on fire. Worst of all it reminds him that he's willing to fight back, willing to sink to Zayn's level if it means it will give him the upper hand. He quickly closes the music app and launches his phone across the room where it mercifully lands in a pile of dirty clothes. He'll deal with his emails later, he'll deal with everything later. 

***

It’s not long after that that Liam finds himself freshly showered and sitting at a small table in the corner of the coffee shop that’s conveniently located around the corner from Malik Industries’. He knows that he should probably be getting to work and not just sitting here sipping his latte, but he honestly can’t be arsed at the moment. He knows he has to face everything eventually, _but it doesn’t have to be right this second does it?_   The only thing that is giving him even the tiniest bit of motivation to actually move is his curiosity. He would actually like to know what Louis was able to uncover. Maybe he found something that they will be able to use, for once. 

He’s about to get up to leave when he sees a curly haired man rush into the shop, _Harry_. Liam keeps his head as low as he possibly can so that Harry doesn’t see him, but the other main seems to be in a hurry and doesn’t even glance his way. He watches as Harry orders quickly at the counter and then stands off to the side scrolling through his phone as he waits for his name to be called. Liam can’t help but smile at Harry’s outfit. He’s wearing a button down Hawaiian shirt that seems to somehow perfectly border the line between tacky and fashionable, over skin-tight black skinny jeans that could have possibly been painted on. It’s a look that would be ridiculous on anyone else, but Harry somehow makes it work. As Harry gratefully takes his order from the barista and hurries out the door, Liam is thinking about how he would probably actually really like Harry if he wasn’t on the other side of all of this. How he and Louis actually seem to perfectly balance each other out. Harry is the cool slow drawl, to Louis’ wild and enthusiastic babbling. They’re like two sides of a spectrum that meet perfectly in the middle. _Not like that matters much now_.

Liam looks down at his own plain jumper and black jeans, if he didn’t hate Harry and every thing he stands for maybe he would ask him for fashion advice. That’s not really fair, he doesn’t necessarily hate Harry. Just hates that he’s taken Zayn’s side, that he’s let himself get caught up in this disaster on wheels that they all seem to be riding at the moment. He knows that Harry and Zayn have been friends for a long time, and that Harry is a very integral part to Zayn’s company. It’s only natural for him to take Zayn’s side, Liam gets that. But understanding is not the same as forgiving. He doesn’t know if he could ever forgive him for hurting Louis like he did. Harry’s going to have to answer for that eventually, if Liam has anything to say about it. 

Liam is startled out of his deep morning thoughts by the sound of his phone vibrating against the small table in front of him. He looks down to see that it’s a text from Louis. 

Louis: U coming?? Meet me in the basement when u get here. Pretty sure Harry’s on to us. 

Liam can’t hold in the groan of annoyance that slips out of his mouth as he reads the text. It shouldn’t be a surprise really, Zayn and Harry are smart. Of course they would have the best possible form of cyber security in place to keep themselves and their company protected. It was only a matter of time before they detected Louis’ presence on Zayn’s network. Liam was just hoping they had a little more time. _More time before he had to face Zayn_. He quickly taps out a response and hits send.

Liam: Fantastic. Be there soon.

He gives one last eye roll to the universe before grabbing his latte and the pastry bag in front of him. It’s too bad the coffee shop isn’t farther away, because he finds himself standing in front of the building that has become his temporary office much sooner than he would have liked. He sighs before pushing through the door. Bob is at his desk as always and gives him a smile, although it doesn’t seem as big as it usually does. But then again, maybe Liam is just projecting his own shit onto everyone else. He has a tendency to do that. 

Bob nods at him as he moves through security. “Good morning Liam, happy Friday.” Liam nods back, he actually forgot it’s Friday. _Thank God_. He musters up his best imitation of a smile, “you too Bob. TGIF right?” Bob laughs lightly in response and grins when Liam hands him the pastry bag. “What is it about me that makes everybody bring me chocolate chip scones?” Liam smiles, “you’re very appreciated Bob. I think that’s what it is.” Bob chuckles good-naturedly, “if I didn’t know any better I’d say you all are trying to fatten me up.” Liam gasps, playing affronted. “Never even crossed my mind.” Bob flashes another grin, “well thank you all the same. I’ll let you get to work now.” Liam nods, “you too. Thanks.” He’s about to turn away when he hears Bob’s voice again. “Make sure you stay out of trouble Mr. Payne.” He’s still smiling, but something in his tone makes it sound a little like a warning. Liam gives him a salute and heads for the basement. He’s still thinking about Bob’s last words as the elevator makes its way downwards, maybe he was just imaging it. 

Or maybe he needs to be more careful than he originally thought.

 


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record at this point, but thank you all so much for all of your patience, love, and support on this fic. I honestly wouldn't have gotten this far without it <3\. 
> 
> I felt like it was time to go back to Zayn's POV for a little bit and get his side of things. As always, I would so love to hear what you think! :)
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Zayn’s been told once or twice, or maybe a few more times but who’s counting, that he has a bit of a temper. So sometimes he might get a little passionate and react before actually thinking it through, is that so wrong? And he’s gotten better at it, he swears he has. Just the other day the waiter in a restaurant accidentally spilled a glass of water all over him and he was able to contain himself to only a surprised shriek. He considers that excellent progress. He’s like practically zen now, not quite to Harry’s standards, but zen none the less. Except for one thing. _Except for Liam_. 

So he might be a little irritated at the general existence of the rest of humanity today, but that has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that he woke up to a Liam-less bed this morning. _Absolutely not_. Because a thing like that wouldn’t bother him. Because he’s fucking zen now. 

He hadn’t really even expected Liam to actually show up when he had texted last night. He had sort of done it on whim not thinking anything would come of it, especially not after the tense exchange they had had earlier in Zayn’s office. That reminds him, he’s going to have to keep an eye on Louis’ hacking. It hasn’t become a full blown issue quite yet, more of a nuisance. Like a mosquito you can’t seem to swat. 

But the point is that Liam did show up last night. Not only did he show up, but he let Zayn fuck his brains out. _That_ was probably the most surprising part of it all. Him sneaking out of Zayn’s bed in the middle of the night was mostly to be expected. _So why had it surprised him so much?_

He sighs as he pushes open the front door to his building. If he stays here trying to figure out the things that go through his brain in relation to Liam he’ll be standing on the pavement all bloody day. He wrinkles his brows in confusion when he sees that Bob’s not at his security post. It’s another member of their security team. Alan or Andrew or something. He’s a fresh faced lad, looks like he might not be more than 12, eager to please. 

His entire face seems to light up when he notices Zayn walking towards him. He beams at Zayn as he moves through the security check, “morning sir. How is your day going?” Zayn does his very best attempt at civility. “Oh yes, it’s going just fine err…” The boy just grins at him, completely unfazed at Zayn’s clear lack of social skills. “It’s Alec sir, no problem. And my day is going fantastic, thank you!” 

Zayn knows he should probably appreciate the boy’s enthusiasm for life, but he sort of wants to ram his own head into a brick wall at the moment. “That’s great Alec, glad to hear it. But please call me Zayn. Sir makes me feel like me father.” That’s not really the vibe he’s going for, except for that one time Liam accidentally slipped in the middle of a rather lively evening and called him ‘daddy.’ _But that’s a discussion for another day_. 

Alec nods his head vigorously up and down in understanding. “Yes, of course sir… I mean Zayn… sir.” Zayn tries his absolute best not to roll his eyes. “Not that it isn’t nice to see you Alec, but where’s Bob. Is he poorly today?” He watches as Alec nearly melts under the compliment. “No sir, he’s just working on a few things that need his immediate attention. He asked me to cover the front door for him.” Zayn nods. “Alright then, have a nice day.” Alec practically jumps up and down in response. “Thank you, you too sir!” Zayn lets yet another eye roll escape as he moves towards the elevator. He has a feeling it’s going to be a very long day. 

Surprisingly he makes it all the way to his office without running into anyone. No Harry, _no Liam_ , no one. He does find Harry eventually, however, as soon as he opens the door to his office. It’s not just Harry either, Bob is there too. It catches him a little off guard, so his response might not be the most eloquent. “What the fuck?” Both men look up, but neither look to be too impressed with Zayn’s antics.

Harry glances to Bob and shakes his head in exasperation. “Exscuse us, we’re trying to save your idiot arse from yourself.” Zayn raises his brows in confusion, but Harry doesn’t explain any further. He grabs his coffee cup from Zayn’s desk and starts moving towards the door. “Bob will you fill him in please? I need to go find Louis and make sure he isn’t burning this whole bloody building down.” He starts to push the door open before turning back to Zayn. “We’re talking about this later Z. No discussion. By the way, I brought you a coffee. It’s on your desk.” Zayn nods in bewilderment as he watches Harry’s back disappear through the door.

Finally he turns back to Bob who’s still tapping away on Zayn’s office computer like he’s trying to hack into a space center or something. Zayn sinks into the chair across from his own desk. “What’s wrong with him? Did his yoga class get cancelled this morning or something?” Bob looks up at him and shakes his head. Zayn wishes people would stop doing that, it’s getting irritating. Bob leans back in his chair, “you might know why he’s so upset if you ever bothered to check your phone.” 

Zayn glances down to his pocket to look at the outline of his phone inside of it, he suddenly remembers he turned it off when Liam showed up last night and never bothered to turn it back on. _He’s been a little distracted_. He looks back at Bob sheepishly. “Sorry. I honestly forgot I turned it off. What’s up?” Bob lets out a snort. “Ah, well let me see here… it appears that somebody has hacked your home wireless network. Oh and it also appears that the somebody in question is more than likely Louis Tomlinson.” Zayn nearly spits out the sip of lukewarm coffee he’s just taken. “What? That’s not possible, I’ve been watching Louis for days. He was nowhere close to getting in.” Bob narrows his eyes. “I’m sorry, you knew about this and you didn’t think it might be worth mentioning to… I don’t know… your head of cyber security?” 

Zayn can tell now that Bob’s pissed off, and honestly he has the right to be, but it just doesn’t make any sense. “I’m telling you Bob, I’ve been watching his every move. He wasn’t there yet. It’s not humanly possible.” Bob lets out a deep breath as if he’s trying to physically dispel his anger from his own body. When he speaks again his voice becomes low and even, as if he’s explaining something complicated to a child. “Well it turns out it is possible… if he has inside help.” 

Zayn raises his eyebrows at that. “Are you saying that someone inside my company helped him?” He can already feel the fear and rage starting to mix together from deep within his chest. Bob seems to hesitate for a few seconds before answering. “Kind of. More specifically someone from inside your own flat.” 

It takes a minute for that to register and then he feels his throat constrict as the realization hits him like a punch square in the chest. “Fuck.” He watches as his paper coffee cup slams against the nearest wall and the contents explode outwards in every direction. He honestly wasn’t even aware that he had thrown it. Now it looks the way his heart feels, like someone ripped it out and threw it against a wall. He takes a deep shuddering breath in an attempt to calm himself. “Liam.”

Bob nods solemnly. His expression has gone gentle and when he speaks again Zayn notices that his voice has as well. “You gave him access to your network last night?” Zayn doesn’t say anything, just nods. He honestly doesn’t know what to say. Doesn’t trust himself to say anything without breaking down, _and that is so not what he needs today_. 

They continue on in silence for several more minutes. Bob tapping away on Zayn’s computer, and Zayn feverishly going over ever single detail of the night before in his head. _Of course that’s why Liam had pulled a complete 180 and agreed to come over last night. He was just trying to get dirt. He was just trying to screw him over, literally_. Zayn lets out a bitter laugh at the irony, but when he sees the concerned expression on Bob’s face he realizes he probably looks insane. _Maybe he is_. 

Bob pushes the chair back and stands up. “Listen Zayn, I obviously couldn’t reverse the damange but I’ve gotten him kicked out of the network for now. I honestly don’t know how bad the damage is yet, but I’ll keep working on it all day and all night if I have to. The good news is, it doesn’t appear that he launched any attacks or let any viruses loose. We just need to figure out what he saw or copied. I’ll give you an update as soon as I have one, yeah?”  Zayn nods and closes his eyes as he listens to Bob's retreating footsteps. 

He’s zen, he’s so bloody zen right now.

 


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Once again, thank you all so much for your support of this fic! I just can't say that enough. I've been really enjoying writing this story in the different POV's and I'm so glad to hear that most of you have been liking it too. As always, I would absolutely love to know what you think and if you have any ideas on where you'd like this to go! 
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Louis knows that his bliss is probably going to be short-lived, but he’s not going to think about that right now. Because right now he’s walking on water, right now he’s practically a God. And it will surely come back to bite him in the arse, but it was worth it for the look on Harry’s face this morning. 

Louis had known instantly when he walked in the door this morning and saw the frazzled look on Harry’s face that he knew what Louis had done. He honestly didn’t think they would catch on so quickly, so he does actually give them kudos on that. _It was too late to stop him though_. That thought makes the wide smile on his face somehow get impossibly wider. He’s probably making too big of a deal out of this, but it’s been so long since he’s felt like they have the upper hand in this shit show that he’s absolutely determined to soak up every second of it. 

As he enters the basement he quickly locates Niall at his desk. He can’t help but smile as he takes in Niall’s state as he approaches him. He has his head resting on his hand on the desktop, while his other hand is clutching a water bottle. Louis plops down in the chair across from Niall and clicks his tongue in mock judgement. “Morning sunshine, nursing a bit of a hangover are we?” Niall lifts his head up just enough to glare at Louis. “Are you kidding me mate, I’m Irish we don’t get hangovers. It’s not genetically possible.” Louis scoffs at that. “Well in that case, somebody should tell your face. You look like you slept in a dumpster.” Niall launches a pen in his general direction without really even coming close to hitting him. Louis watches as it lands near a coworker’s feet and the startled woman nearly drops her coffee. 

Louis raises his eyebrows at Niall’s sloppy aim, but doesn’t comment on it. “So I’m assuming you hada good night then?” Niall shrugs noncommittally. “Met a nice girl, taught her to play pool, and drank my weight in beer so yeah it was alright.” Louis smirks, “and I’m assuming you ended the night at her place?” Niall shrugs again. “First of all, you know I don’t kiss and tell I’m a classy lady like that. Second of all, I think I might be on a break right now.” Louis raises his eyebrows again, “I’m sorry. Is the legendary Niall Horan saying he didn’t pull?” Niall lets out a puff of air. “I’m saying I didn’t pull cause I didn’t want to not cause I couldn’t, there’s a difference.” Louis smirks. “Ok then, whatever you say tiger.”

Niall puts his head back on the his arm and groans before lifting it again. “Seriously Lou, I think I might be broken. My heart just hasn’t been in it lately.” He tips his water bottle on it’s side and rolls it aimlessly between his hands on the desktop. “Maybe I just need to shag a fit bloke to cleanse my palate or summat.” Louis grunts, “Oi don’t look at me. I’ve got enough drama going on in my life, don’t need to add you on top of it.” Niall grins. “Don’t worry Tommo, been there and done that. Wasn’t that great.” Louis lets out a displeased screech. “How dare you speak to me like that, you should’ve been honored.” Niall smiles. “I’m just kidding Lou. I was honored, you’re one of the most fun shags I’ve ever had.” Louis is trying his best to still look irritated, but he can’t help but smile back. He can tell from the serious look in his eyes that Niall is being genuine. Niall sits back in his chair and smirks, “besides I just love how loud you are. Quite the naughty little minx.” He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively and shoots Louis a wink. 

This time it’s Louis hurling the pen, but it doesn’t miss it’s mark. Niall huffs as he rubs the quickly forming red mark on his temple. “Ok, no more jokes about your sexual prowess. I learned my lesson.” Louis smiles triumphantly. Niall takes a swig from his water bottle before shaking his head at Louis affectionately. 

“So enough about my night, how was yours? Were you able to get to Liam before it was too late.” Louis hesitates before nodding his head slightly. “Yeah, well kind of.” Niall tilts his head to the side and looks at him quizzically. “Seriously mate, this not hangover is kind of kicking my arse right now so I’m not really in the mood for riddles.” Louis sighs. “Well I did convince him that giving in to Zayn again was a bad idea, but I couldn’t stop him from going to Zayn’s place.” Poor Niall looks even more confused than he did 30 seconds ago, so Louis decides to push on with his explanation.

“He decided to go to Zayn’s place to give me an advantage with my hacking.” This time it’s Niall who sighs. “Ok, what did you two do now?” Louis leans back in his chair. “Well before you get all judgmental you should now that our mission was very successful.” Niall groans, “oh thank you that was very reassuring Lou. Now what did you do?” 

Louis rolls his eyes. “It’s very simple really. Liam just needed to connect his phone to Zayn’s wireless network so that I could hack him from the inside out. Worked like a damn charm.” Niall narrows his eyes. “And how exactly did Liam get onto Zayn’s network? Are you telling me he just asked him nicely? Cause I’m not buying it.” Louis taps his fingers nervously on the desk. “Well, I’m not sure exactly. We haven’t had a chance to talk about that part yet.” Niall shakes his head. “You realize he’s spiraling don’t you? This is Liam we’re talking about Lou. Strong, steady, and levelheaded Liam. Except for when he isn’t.” Louis nods. “I know Ni. And I tried to talk him out of it, I swear. He was just too determined. You know how stubborn he can be. I figured this way at least we’re in it together and I can keep an eye on him.”

Niall seems to contemplate that for a few seconds before slowly nodding. “Ok yeah I get it, I know you tried. So were you able to get anything good off of Zayn’s network.” Louis smiles at that. Only Niall could go from scolding him to asking for the gossip in no time flat. “I don’t actually know yet. I just copied everything to my computer as fast as I could before I got kicked out, which turned out to be a good call cause I think Harry just found out like 15 minutes ago.” 

Niall lays his head back down on his desk and groans. “And here I thought I was going to have a nice calm morning.” Louis grins, “think you’re working at the wrong company mate.” Niall rolls his eyes, “yeah I think you’re right.” He reaches he hand out over the desk, “give me your laptop.” Louis wrinkles his nose up in confusion. “What, why?” Niall lets out a sigh of annoyance. “Louis you have Zayn and Harry’s stolen secrets on your laptop, I have the sneaking suspicion they’re going to want them back. I need to double, maybe even triple encrypt it if we have any chance of keeping them out.” Louis is already pulling his computer out of his bag before Niall’s finished his speech. “Ok, yeah you’re right. I’m way better at stealing shit, than I am at protecting it.” Niall chuckles, “don’t I know it.” 

Niall is already tapping away on Louis’ laptop when he sees a shadow fall over him, and it appears to be coming from behind. “Wow Li, nice of you to finally join us.” It’s not until Louis swivels around in his chair before he realizes that it isn’t Liam standing behind him at all. _Harry_. He does his absolute best to stay collected. “Oh hey Harry. Sorry, I thought you were Liam.” Harry nods slightly, “Clearly. Are you ready to get to work?” There is absolutely zero humor in Harry’s expression or tone. He’s obviously pissed. Which means whatever it is that Louis stole, _it must be good_. Also, he really doesn't want to admit it, but angry Harry might be turning him on just a little tiny bit. _Curse his dumb kinky brain_. 

He stands up to face Harry, making sure to stand as close to him as possible. “Sure styles, you should know by now that I’m always ready.” Harry remains stone faced, “ok then let’s get going.” He turns on his heel and starts marching towards the door. Louis quickly grabs his bag and gives a wave to Niall before following behind Harry with a smile on his face.

Not even Harry can ruin his bliss, _not today_.

 


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again! I know I just posted a new chapter yesterday, but I actually had some time to write this weekend and you guys are always so sweet to me I just want to give you all a hug! Seriously. Since I can't do that, I wrote you another chapter instead. This entire thing is just pure gratuitous smut. :) 
> 
> As always I'd love to hear your thoughts. You all are just the best. <3
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

This might actually be the worst thing Liam’s ever done, but the jury is still out. _It’s not over until it’s over right?_ There’s still plenty of time for him to make multiple other disastrous mistakes even worse than this one. _How comforting_. Still, this one certainly takes the cake at this point in his life. Then again, it could be worse. He could totally be murdering someone right now. 

In contrast to murder, sitting in Zayn’s lap in his office during the middle of a work day isn’t even that bad. Everything is fine here, _no need to be alarmed_. He’s angry, Zayn’s angry. This is how they deal with things, this is how they’ve always dealt with things. That doesn’t make it right, _but it’s what they do_. 

Liam hadn’t even been planning to come up here, at least not yet. He had been heading for the basement to talk to Louis first, see if he found anything last night on Zayn’s network. But something about that conversation with Bob just wasn’t sitting right with him. Something was off, and he would’ve bet everything he had that it had something to do with Zayn. That feeling had him pushing the button for the top floor before the lift even had a chance to open its doors at the basement. 

That’s why he was peeking around the corner of the hallway when he saw Harry leave Zayn’s office. He didn’t look happy. _Something was very wrong_. He waited until Harry disappeared into the closing doors of the lift before making his way over to Zayn’s office, but he didn’t go inside. Not yet. Harry had left the door open a crack, which made it much easier to hear the conversation going on inside. Zayn was talking to Bob, he must have beaten Liam up here somehow. Bob was telling him all about what Liam and Louis had done. Bob is in charge of Zayn’s cyber security. Why didn’t they know that? Why didn’t they do their research. _Stupid mistake_. 

Liam couldn’t see what was happening inside, but he could hear what sounded like something hitting the wall. Zayn has a temper, Liam knows it like the back of his own hand, so he’s not even surprised. When he heard what sounded like Bob’s footsteps moving towards the door he took that as his cue to hurry back to his spot around the corner. He watched as Bob made his way down the hall and into the lift. That’s what Liam should have done too, that’s what any sane person would have done. _Spoiler: that’s not what he did_. 

Instead he walked right into Zayn’s office and locked the door behind him, before moving around his desk and straddling him in his chair. That brings him to now. Now he’s grinding down into Zayn’s lap. He can feel the other man’s hard length through his jeans. Zayn is gripping his hips so hard, he’s definitely going to have some awful bruises tomorrow. But he’ll deal with it then. That’s how he wants it, _hard_. That’s how it ever is with them, in every sense. 

They haven’t spoken a single word to each other yet, but Zayn is licking into his mouth. He’s dominating the kiss, if you can even call it a kiss. Liam doesn’t really care. He just needs to feel something, he’s sick of being numb. He lets out an involuntary moan when Zayn bites down on his lip, _hard_. This is so messed up. They’re _so messed up_. 

***

Harry’s pretty sure he’s probably going to Hell. He’s so mad at Louis. Just looking at him is pissing him off, but it’s not even Louis’ fault. Harry knows that, subconsciously he does. Louis was just reacting to something that Zayn started. Something that Harry never should have gone along with. But he did, and now they’re here sitting in Harry’s office and Louis’ looking so smug and accomplished Harry doesn’t know if he wants to kill him or fuck him. No he does know, he just doesn’t like the answer. 

They’ve just been sitting here staring at each other for over five minutes. He’s always thought the phrase ‘you could cut the tension with a knife’ was cliche, but now he gets it. He knows Louis can feel it too, _he’s just not sure what he’s going to do about it_. Louis leans back in his seat and finally breaks the silence, “so you want to do something or you just going to sit there and look at me all day.” Harry licks his lips because suddenly they’re feeling too dry, “haven’t decided what I want to do yet.” 

Louis smirks and stands up to pull his shirt over his head. “Maybe I should make it easier for you then.” He turns his back to Harry and pushes himself up to sit on the edge of the desk, looking over his shoulder at Harry expectantly like he knows exactly what he’s going to do. Probably cause he does. Louis has him totally wrapped around his little finger, _and they both know it_. Harry knew it that day in the bar. He probably should have listened to his instincts to run that day. Hell he should probably listen to them now too, but clearly that isn’t his best skill. 

He’s so sick of second guessing everything every one around him says or does, but most of all he’s sick of second guessing himself. So he’s not going to. At least not for now. For now he’s just going to do what he wants, consequences be damned. _And what he wants is Louis Tomlinson_. 

He rounds the desk quickly and before he knows it he’s standing in-between Louis’ spread legs and is running his hands along his toned abs until they make their way up to his face. He leaves his hands there as he pulls Louis closer to him until there is no more space between them, until their lips are crashing together. It’s rough and dirty right from the start and there’s no way that it should feel this good, but Harry’s drowning in it now _and he needs it_.

They stay like that for several minutes, only occasionally pulling apart just enough to gasp into each other’s mouths. Eventually one of Harry’s hands makes its way down to Louis’ crotch and he’s palming him through the fabric of his now very tight jeans, while Louis’ hands have circled behind Harry’s head and he’s clinging on tightly.  Harry’s fingers are fumbling with the button of Louis’ jeans before he even realizes he’s doing it. It’s like somewhere along the way his brain stopped connecting to his body. _Maybe that’s for the best_. 

Eventually he gets the zip to cooperate and pushes the waistband of Louis’ boxers down just enough to expose his hard length. Louis has begun unbuttoning Harry’s shirt in what can only be described as a frenzied fashion. Harry moves his hands away from Louis only long enough for him to push the offending fabric off of Harry’s shoulders. As soon as it’s gone Harry’s hand is back on Louis’ cock, while Louis begins sloppily kissing his freshly exposed chest. Harry gathers his pre-come from the tip so that his hand will glide a little easier, but he knows its still probably dry and rough. If Louis cares or even notices he doesn’t show it, instead he just sinks his teeth into Harry’s shoulder. 

Harry growls lowly at the pain as he speeds up his hand. Louis has now resorted to babbling incoherent mumblings into Harry’s skin. He’s writhing under Harry’s hands until eventually he stills and is spilling his release over Harry’s fist. Harry pulls him through it until Louis starts whimpering from the oversensitivity. He pulls his hand away while Louis pants into his skin.

Louis places a soft kiss to one of the many love bites now decorating Harry’s chest before he finally lifts his head up. He grabs Harry’s hand and pulls it up to his own mouth. He doesn’t say anything just keeps his eyes locked on Harry’s as he licks his own come off of Harry’s fingers one by one. 

Once Louis seems to be satisfied with his work his hands move lower and are making quick work of Harry’s very tight jeans. He pushes the jeans and his pants down to his mid-thigh before Harry feels Louis’ hands on his shoulders pushing him backwards until he lands in the chair behind him. Louis pushes himself off the desk and falls to his knees in front of Harry. Harry pushes the fabric now pooling at his ankles all the way off so that he can spread his legs further apart, giving Louis more space in-between them.

Louis blows a breath of hot air on Harry’s hard length that sends a spark shooting up his spine. He doesn’t waste any time after that, taking Harry all the way down in one motion. Harry thought he was drowning before, _he was wrong_. Louis has worked up a good rhythm now. His tongue is showing extra attention to Harry’s head, just the way he likes. He can tell that he’s already getting close, but he’s too far gone to be embarrassed. 

Without warning Louis pulls off his length with an obscene ‘pop’ sound. He looks up at Harry from underneath his lashes, “gonna come down my throat love?” Harry groans in response, way past words at this point, and fists his hands into Louis’ hair pushing his head back to its previous position. Louis smirks and leans forward swallowing Harry back down. It’s only a matter of seconds before the tight knot in Harry’s stomach finally breaks and he spills down Louis’ throat, just like he said he would. 

Louis waits until Harry’s finished to pull away and rest his head on Harry’s bare thigh, “fuck.” Harry nods his head in response as he realizes his fingers are still tangled in Louis’ hair. 

If he wasn’t going to Hell before, he’s pretty sure he is now.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still always feel so awkward writing smut, OMG. I hope this wasn't too cringe-y. *Hides face in hands.*
> 
> Thanks again for reading! x


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Thank you once again for all the love last week. I'm really having so much fun writing this story, and it makes me so happy to know you guys are liking it too! I also want to say that I honestly do want to hear your thoughts and suggestions for the story, please just make sure to also be nice to each other in the comments <3\. 
> 
> Finally we're to Niall's POV! I've been wanting to write it for a while, I guess I was just waiting for the right time. This chapter got a lot more intense than I was intending it to, it just sort of turned out that way. I'd love to hear your thoughts! :)
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

It’s a good thing Niall likes chaos, because it looks like everything really is going to hell at the moment. _And fast_. He sighs and shakes his head as he continues working on Louis’ laptop. He’s been too busy trying to protect the shit Louis stole to actually analyze it yet, but he’s guessing it’s pretty damning. Somebody has already tried to hack Louis’ system twice since Niall’s gotten a hold of it. _Not today_.

Most people would probably say he’s crazy for getting involved in this circus, but he doesn’t really see it that way. Maybe that’s cause he actually is crazy, who’s to say really? All he knows is that two of the most important people in his life are in trouble and he’ll do just about anything to protect them. He’s not really sure when it happened exactly, but somewhere within the last few years the three of them became a family. A weird, misfit, dysfunctional family, but a family none the less. 

Niall really would happily take a bullet for them. Well, maybe not happily. Can one really be happy while being shot? Probably not, but he would do it without hesitation if it was necessary. The thing is, that the current situation doesn’t involve bullets at all. It involves sex, power, and a pesky little thing called feelings. A bullet might actually be less painful in certain situations. 

He can see now that Liam and Louis are both way too deep in this to look at it objectively. Maybe they have been all along, that was probably an oversight on Niall’s part. He’s just not sure how it all seemed to escalate so quickly? What he does know is that no matter what Liam can’t seem to keep his hands off of Zayn, and Louis doesn’t look to be too far behind with Harry. 

Niall has never pretended to be skilled in the relationship department. In fact, he usually does his best to avoid the whole mess all together. Not that he doesn’t like to meet people and enjoy their company, _he definitely does_. He’s just never been in love, never really been interested in it. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t familiar with feelings. He actively tries to avoid those too, but he’s usually not as successful. It’s damn near impossible to be physical with someone without feeling _something_. So Liam and Louis jumping into bed with Zayn and Harry respectively is not only a bad idea, it’s potentially the worst one possible. 

With all that being said Niall isn’t going to tell them to stop, he knows better than anyone that being told not to do something is only going to make you want to do it more. Especially with Liam and Lou, they’re both way too stubborn for their own good. He’s really just sort of hoping this whole thing will play out and they’ll learn for themselves, without destroying everyone involved in the process. 

But just because he’s not going to say anything that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t have opinions, he actually has a lot of them. He’s still not really sure how he feels about Harry, but he knows he doesn’t like Zayn. Not since the moment he met him. He’s possessive and cocky, and he has a way of driving Liam mad like he’s never seen before. Liam is almost never impulsive or reckless, _expect for when it comes to Zayn_. 

The thing is that Liam knows that too, but it isn’t enough to make him stop. It’s like watching your friend repeatedly walking into a brick wall without actually being able to do anything to help him. But Zayn’s not just a brick wall, he’s also a snake. They’re only in this stupid mess cause he’s blackmailing Liam, and there is no way in hell that Niall is going to let him get away with that. Why in the world Liam would still have anything to do with Zayn, Niall has no idea. _Brick wall_. 

As for Louis and Harry? That one’s complicated too. He’s not really sure how much Harry knew about this going in, but he did give information to Zayn that he got by lying to and sleeping with Louis. Zayn then used that information to set this whole thing in motion, so Harry certainly isn’t at the top of Niall’s list of favorite people either. At the end of the day Niall is targeting Zayn, but if Harry happens to get caught in the crossfire Niall reckons he won’t feel too bad about it. The ultimate problem here though is Liam and Louis. They’re so tangled up in this Niall doesn’t know how to take a shot at Zayn and Harry without hitting his friends too. 

So until he can figure out the logistics, his plan is to keep his boys as safe as possible while keeping the damage to a minimum. His plan also involves keeping his thoughts to himself as much as he can. While Liam and Louis might say they agree with him, their actions say otherwise. If they don’t know what he’s up to then they won’t try to stop him when their feelings undoubtably get in the way. Someone here has to keep a clear head, and it appears that he’s the only one left. 

Niall pauses when a file on the screen catches his attention. It’s called ‘family photos.’ He remembers hearing something about that earlier when Liam briefly got his hands on Zayn’s laptop. Apparently it’s where Zayn kept all of his secret shit so that someone who didn’t know him as well as Liam wouldn’t ever think to look there. It’s actually very clever. Niall wrinkles his nose at the compliment as it flits through his thoughts before clicking on the file to open it. 

It’s everything Liam mentioned seeing before. All of the Double L product plans and detailed lists of information and schedules for Liam, Louis, and Niall. The sheer invasion of privacy makes Niall’s blood boil, but he keeps flipping through the information in the file until he finds something that makes him stop dead in his tracks. It’s just a simple word document, but its contents have made Niall completely stop breathing. Eventually he has to suck in a hard breath. It appears to be a list of names, _shady names_ , and prices. An angry slew of questions begin swirling through Niall’s brain at alarming speeds. 

_Was Zayn considering selling their company secrets? Was he still planning to do that? Is that what this is all about then? Is he just using this blackmail as a means to gather more information to sell so that he can pass it along only for someone else to bring their company down?_

Niall really hopes not, because that would mean Zayn is even more awful and dangerous than he originally thought and there’s nothing Niall hates more than being proven wrong. He slams Louis laptop shut and shoves it in his bag before slinging it over his shoulder. A few of his coworkers wave or call out to him as he makes his way through the maze of cubicles in the basement, but he barely acknowledges them. He’s on a mission now. 

Unluckily for Zayn, the only thing Niall likes more than chaos is revenge.

 


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Lovelies! I don't even know how to tell you anymore how much I appreciate all of you for reading this and loving it as much as I love writing it. I know it's getting pretty intense right now, let me know if there's any certain direction you'd like it to go. I always love reading your thoughts! :)
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam closes his eyes before splashing the icy cold water running from the bathroom faucet on his face, in an attempt to gain at least some composure. He’s just going to pretend his hands aren’t shaking because that’s probably easiest right now. He has other things to worry about. _Such as figuring out what the hell he’s doing_. That should probably be priority number one. 

He feels his phone vibrating in his back pocket and pulls it out to see it’s yet another call from Niall. That’s probably the 4th one in the last fifteen minutes, but he still hits the ‘ignore’ button anyway. He really doesn’t have the energy for whatever it is Niall needs to urgently tell him. It can wait, _everything can wait_. 

This will always and forever be the part that he’s never prepared for. This is the part that comes after the high he gets from being with Zayn, even when he knows he shouldn’t do it. This is the part where he crashes to the ground violently. This is the part where he starts to feel the weight of what he’s done. _This is the part that sucks_. 

He takes a shaky breath and stares into the mirror at the pale faced ghost looking back at him. _How did this happen?_ A couple weeks ago he was doing just fine, not a care in the world. Ok so maybe not exactly, but at least he could pretend back then. The earlier question was rhetorical though, cause he knows what happened. _Zayn happened_. 

But as much as he hates to admit it, Zayn isn’t the only one to blame here. What happened this morning was his fault. He should have just gone to the basement to meet Louis like he had planned. He and Niall probably would have been able to talk him down, and would have reminded him to keep focused. He figures subconsciously he knew that, and that’s why he went directly to the top floor instead. Now that he’s gotten a taste of Zayn again he can’t seem to stay away, no matter how bad the consequences are. That’s what makes what they’re doing so dangerous. He just hopes for his sake, and everyone else involved, that he hasn’t reached the point of no return yet. But he’s already in so deep now he might not even know what the point of no return looks like anymore. 

His eyes shift down to the part of his collarbone that isn’t covered by his shirt. More specifically, the dark bruise that’s currently forming there. If he pulls his shirt up a little he can just barely cover it, but that still doesn’t help the one on the side of his neck that Zayn left last night. Liam groans to the empty toilets.There’s no way he can cover that one, unless he plans to wear a scarf indoors which would probably only generate more unwanted questions than the mark itself. But maybe he deserves the questions and the speculation, he is the one that just sucked his mortal enemy off in his office in the middle of a work day. Is that what Zayn is, _his enemy_?” He can’t even keep track anymore. 

His pity party for one is suddenly interrupted when the door to the loo bursts open. He hears Niall swearing before he sees him. He’s pretty sure the Irish accent gets stronger as he gets angrier, but he’s never actually tested that theory. When Niall sees him he lets out a sigh that appears to be a combination of both relief and exasperation at the same time. 

“Liam, where the bloody hell have you been mate? I’ve been calling you for the last twenty minutes. I was starting to think you were dead.” Liam sighs, _that makes two of us_. Sorry Ni, just needed to take a minute to myself.” He watches as Niall’s eyes sweep over him as if he’s just now noticing his disheveled appearance. He knows he looks a damn mess, but it’s still better than he feels. 

He watches as his friend runs his hand through his own hair. “No offense mate, but you look like shit.” Liam lets out a humorless laugh at that, leave it to Niall to point out the obvious so bluntly. “Yeah, I’ve had better days. What’s up?” Niall actually looks apologetic now, which makes Liam nervous instantly. He clearly has bad news, _really bad news_. 

He leans his shoulder and head against the marble tiled wall, because he doesn’t really have the energy to stand upright any longer. “Spit it out Niall.” He watches as Niall flicks his eyes upwards for a second as if he’s asking for divine intervention. I’ve been spending the last hour trying to encrypt the shit Louis stole. I haven’t gone through all of it yet, but I did find something…and it’s not good Li.” Liam closes his eyes for a few seconds before responding. “How bad?” Niall seems to be struggling with an internal dialogue raging in his brain. “I don’t know how to say this, but..” Liam slams his fist into the unforgiving wall, but he doesn’t even wince at the pain. “Just say it Niall. I don’t have time for this.” Liam watches as he takes a deep breath. “I think Zayn might be planning to sell all that stuff Harry took from Louis’ laptop. Basically he has everything he needs to sell our company to the highest bidder right out from under us.”

Liam feels like someone has punched him in the gut, and stolen all the air out of the room. Suddenly everything around him begins spinning and he doesn’t know which way is up anymore. That’s the last thing he remembers before everything mercifully goes black. 

***

“Liam, wake up! Please wake up, Fuck.” Liam stirs at the yelling in his ear and the hand swatting his face repeatedly. “Ugh Ni, I’m up. Knock it off.” He opens his eyes to see Niall looking down at him. He’s now laying on the marble floor of Malik Industries’ top floor loos, his head resting on Niall’s lap. He moves to sit up, but his friend puts a gentle yet firm hand on his shoulder to keep him in place. “try not to move too much yet, get your bearings first ok?” Liam nods and then winces at the instant headache the small movement gives him. Niall’s right, maybe he should just sit still for a minute. 

He carefully tilts his head upwards to look at Niall again. “What happened?” Niall shakes his head. “Dunno. I was telling you about Zayn one minute and the next I see your eyes rolling into the back of your head before you crashed to the floor. Scared the shit out of me mate.” Liam groans when he remembers the conversation they were having before he passed out. _That explains it_. His body probably decided to shut down in an attempt to protect him from the truth. _If only it was that easy_. 

Liam reaches up to rub the back of his head in an attempt to dull the pain there. He must have bumped it when he hit the ground. He waits a few minutes before he says anything else, but when he does it comes out barely above a whisper. “Do you really think he’s trying to steal our company so that he can sell it for a profit Ni?” Niall stares at him for a minute before shaking his head again. “Honestly Li, I don’t know yet. I don’t have enough information to make a solid assessment.” He moves his hand to rub soothing circles in Liam’s back. Liam sighs and closes his eyes. “What are we going to do?” 

Niall squeezes his shoulder in comfort. “That one's easy Li. We’re gonna fight like hell.”

 


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! First of all, this fic officially has over 400 kudos!! That's amazing, thank you so much. I don't even know what else to say. 
> 
> I know it feels like not much is happening in this chapter, but we're getting there I promise! Thank you for sticking with this story, it means a lot. As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts!
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Louis’ mum always used to say that he lived his life like a man on fire: doing first and thinking second. She was mostly talking about all the times he almost killed himself by taking risks, like climbing a too tall tree or taking a turn too fast on his bike. She probably wasn’t talking about sleeping with the guy who’s hellbent on destroying you and your best friends. _But either way, she wasn’t wrong_.

He finally pushes his head out of Harry’s lap and forces himself to stand on his shaking legs. He feels like he’s trying to walk under water. His movements are slow and every step feels light yet still heavy at the same time. He risks a glance at Harry and he’s a least a little satisfied to see that he doesn’t look much better. His hair is sticking in every direction humanly possible and he has somewhat of a dazed expression on his face. 

Louis takes a deep breath. _He has to stay in control here_. He pulls on his clothes, making sure that his movements are as coordinated as possible, before he grabs his bag and moves towards the door. Harry seems to come out of his daze then, at least enough to mumble a question. Louis can’t help the slight shiver that goes up his spine at the sound of the other man’s deep, gravelly voice. “Where are you going?” 

Louis takes the last few steps towards the door, making sure to sway his hips as much as possible before he turns back around. “Got some other things to do H. I’m sure you can manage for a few hours without me, don’t you think?” He throws him a wink and a kiss blown delicately off his fingers before he pushes out the door. Luckily, he didn’t miss getting a glimpse of Harry’s jaw hanging on the ground before he left. 

Once back in the hallway he leans his back against the nearest wall and closes his eyes. If only he felt as confident as he had acted in there. But as they always say, ‘fake it until you make it’ right? He’s starting to wonder when the ‘make it’ part is going to kick in though. 

He pulls his phone out of his pocket to find multiple missed calls and texts from Niall. He rolls his eyes. The Irish are easily excitable in his opinion. It’s not until he starts reading through the texts that he gets nervous. 

Ni: Where r u? We need 2 talk

Ni: Seriously L… NOW!!

Ni: R u with Harry?

Ni: I don’t have time 4 this, I’m finding Li

Ni: Get your butt to the top floor loos NOW

That last one was only sent about ten minutes ago. Louis reluctantly pushes himself off the wall to head in the direction of the loos down the hallway. He takes a deep breath before pushing through the door. He’s not really sure what he expected, but seeing Liam laying on the floor with his head in Niall’s lap definitely wasn’t it. 

He decides not to say anything. Instead he drops his bag on the floor before sliding down the wall until he’s sitting next to Niall on the ground. Somehow this feels right, the three of them crumpled on the floor like a pile of discarded papers. They all sit like that for a while, letting the silence consume them before Louis finally speaks up. “If this is going to be our new hangout spot, I’m thinking we might want to bring an air freshener next time.” Liam snorts in response while Niall retaliates by flicking him in the forehead. 

Liam gently pushes himself up enough so that he can lean against the wall on Niall’s other side. “Sorry Lou, I’ll try to keep location in mind the next time I’m having a meltdown.” Louis leans forward slightly to get a better look at Liam. He notices for the first time that he looks a lot paler than normal, and the dark circles under his eyes are almost menacing at this point. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen his friend look this bad. He’s not sure if it’s making him want to cry or throw up, maybe both. “I’m sorry Li, are you ok? Really?” 

Liam shrugs before leaning his head back against the cool marble behind him and closing his eyes. “Think I might be in way over my head here Lou.” He’s smiling like it’s a joke, but Louis can tell by the waiver in his voice that it isn’t. _He knows the feeling_. Louis glances over to Niall and sees the worry he feels reflecting on his friend’s face as well. He nods. “Yeah there might be a lot of that going around mate.” 

They’re both looking at him now. Niall tilts his head in question, “Harry?” Louis nods and suddenly his throat feels tight. Niall clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth. “Please don’t tell me you did something stupid Lou.” Louis lets out an indignant huff of air. “Fine, I didn’t do anything stupid then.” Niall groans. “Dammit, the two of you are literally going to be the death of me I swear.” 

Louis gives him a confused look, but it’s Liam’s expression that has him really worried. He’s looks even more sad than he did before, and Louis didn’t even think that was possible. “What am I missing here?” Neither say anything, they’re both just looking at each other like they’re having a silent conversation. Louis pushes himself to sit up straighter. “Seriously, you guys are freaking me out.” 

Liam sighs. “Niall found something in that stuff you stole from Zayn. He thinks they might be planning to use everything Harry took from your laptop to sell all our company secrets.” Louis shakes his head, as if that will magically make what Liam just said untrue. “What? No. That’s not possible.” He looks at his friends for comfort, but their pained expressions are only making it worse. “It’s not possible, right?” 

Niall reaches over to pat his knee as if he’s trying to comfort a dog. “Honestly, I don’t know Lou. Don’t have all the answers yet, but I think we need to consider it as a serious possibility.” Louis shakes his head, because that can’t be true. _It can’t be, because then_ …

“Oh my god. I was just with Harry. I just slept with him, on my own free will. Ijust sucked him off in his own freaking office. Fuck.” He might be losing his composure a little bit. He notices that now all the worried expressions in the room are directed at him, _and he doesn’t like it_. Liam is leaning forward so that he can look Louis in the eyes. “I’m so sorry Lou. It’s my fault you got dragged into this.” Louis shakes his head. “It’s not your fault Li. It was my choice to get involved.”

He means that. Sure, he hadn’t realized who Harry was when he met him in the bar that night but he sure as hell knew 20 minutes ago in Harry’s office. He knew it was reckless, but he did it anyway. Not only that, _he liked it_. Once upon a time a well meaning therapist had told him that when he stopped hacking he was going to need to find other healthier ways to get that sense of thrill. That’s the problem, though isn’t it? Safe and predictable doesn’t feel as good as wild and dangerous. Harry is just the dash of chaos that Louis’ been missing in his life lately. But he’s got to find a way to get past that urge to burn everything to the ground, just because he can.

He looks back to Liam and Niall. “So do we have a plan then?” Niall smirks. “I have a few ideas.” Liam looks especially worried, but Louis just nods.

Can’t be worse than anything he’s already done, can it?

 


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Lovelies! I know that it's been forever since I've updated this and I know this chapter is short, but writer's block is killing me. I've been trying to figure out where I want to go with this. I'd really love to hear your thoughts. 
> 
> And thanks again for everything :)
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Zayn would say that he’s confused, but he’s not sure that he can trust his emotions right now. He’s also not entirely sure if anything from this morning has really happened, or if he’s still just asleep and dreaming. So far he woke up in bed alone without Liam, then he went to the office where he found out that Liam likely just came over last night to get into Zayn’s wifi not his bed, and then Liam walked into to his office and rode him right there in broad daylight like nothing had happened. 

He scrubs his hand over his tired face. All of that sounds a lot like something his unconscious brain would conjure up to torture him with at night. Just out of curiosity he gives his own arm a pinch. Nothing happens. _It’s all real then, too bad it still doesn’t make any sense_. 

He lifts his eyes upwards when he hears a light knock at the door. He grunts his consent to the person on the other side and the door is swinging open in a matter of seconds. He sighs as Harry crosses his office and folds his large frame into the chair across from Zayn’s. Zayn loves Harry, he really does. But he was sort of hoping he would have a little more time before they had this conversation. Harry has that signature determined look on his face though, so he’s probably not going to be able to dodge his way out of this one. 

Harry’s intense stare is starting to unsettle him, so he decides to be the first one to break the silence. “Something on your mind Haz?” Harry smiles, but it doesn’t seem to meet his eyes. Zayn’s officially worried. He watches as Harry leans back in his chair, “no more games Z. I need to know what’s going on here. And I need to know yesterday.” 

Everyone always thinks that Harry is all sunshine and cheesy jokes fueled by Yoga and green juice. He is all of those things, but that’s not his only side. He can also be fiercely serious when it comes to the people and things that he loves. He won’t hesitate to fight tooth and nail when needed. Zayn’s always loved that side of him, he’s just never really had to be on this end of it. He knows Harry has every right to be furious with him, but unfortunately that doesn’t make it any easier. 

There are a few ways that Zayn can play this, so he decides to go for dumb. He flicks his gaze away from Harry and to his computer screen, doing his best to fake nonchalance. “What do you mean Haz? I know as much as you do.” Harry scoffs at that. “That’s complete bull and you know it. I’m officially deep in this now Z, and I don’t even fully know what the hell this is yet. Why are we here? Why wage this war with Double L in the first place? It’s not like we needed the revenue. Don’t you think that you at least owe me an explanation?” 

Zayn can’t help but wince at that because he knows that he owes Harry so much more than that, _but his hands are tied_. He sighs again, clearly Harry is not going to drop this. “Look, Harry. I know this is frustrating for you, and I appreciate everything you’ve done probably more than you’ll ever know. But, it’s… complicated.” 

Zayn startles when Harry suddenly slams his fist down on the desk. “That’s not good enough anymore Z. Seriously, I’ve put up with a lot of shit over the years. And I really do love what we’ve built together, I’m so grateful. I’ve been able to overlook a lot, but not this. If you can’t even tell me why we're doing this, then I have to walk away Zayn.” The break in his voice matches the break in Zayn’s heart. When he speaks again it’s so quietZayn has to strain to hear it. “I can’t do this Z. I won’t survive it.” 

Zayn closes his eyes in an attempt to make his head stop spinning. _He was only trying to keep everyone safe, but nothing is going the way he had planned_. He opens his eyes again and reaches across the desk to grab Harry’s hand. He waits for Harry to finally lift his teary gaze to meet his own eyes. “I promise that if I could tell you everything I absolutely would. I never wanted you to be a part of this H, and I definitely didn’t want you to get hurt. Fuck.” He pauses to shake his head. “That’s the last thing I wanted. But telling you wouldn’t help, it would only make it worse. You just have to trust me.” Harry doesn’t pull his hand away from Zayn’s but he looks like he’s just been punched. “Why should I just trust you Z? Cause it’s complicated? Why don’t you un-complicate it?” _He would give anything to do exactly that_. 

It’s the hurt in Harry’s eyes that finally pushes Zayn over the edge. He sweeps his gaze quickly around the room before he drops Harry’s hand. He reaches into his right desk drawer and pulls out a notebook. Harry watches quizzically as he opens to a blank page and then reaches back into the same drawer for a pen. He quickly scrawls out a sentence in his messy writing before flipping the notebook around so that Harry can more easily read what he wrote. ‘ _We can’t talk about this here_.’ 

Harry just stares at the page for several beats before he lifts his gaze back up to Zayn. He looks like he’s about to open his mouth to say something, but Zayn cuts him off with a slight shake of his head. Zayn watches his brow scrunch up in frustration before he leans forward to snatch the pen out of Zayn’s hand. Soon Harry’s neat block letters have found their way onto the page underneath Zayn’s words. He swivels the notebook back in Zayn’s direction. ‘ _Why not here?_ ’ Harry’s holding the pen out to him now and Zayn takes it. ‘Not safe.’ He looks back up to Harry to see that his forehead is scrunched up in confusion again. He takes back control of the pen. ‘ _Is someone making you do this?_ ’ Zayn sighs before reaching for the pen. ‘ _It’s complicated H._ ’ Harry rolls his eyes as he takes the pen back. ‘ _How complicated? How dangerous???’_

He puts the pen back down on the page before sliding it towards Zayn. Zayn grabs and taps it on the edge of the desk in frustration. _He hates this_. He sighs for what feels like the hundredth time this morning. ‘ _Enough to make me want to keep you out of it._ ’ Harry stares into his eyes for several seconds before he writes out his response. ‘ _Too late Z._ ’

Zayn knows he’s right. _He just wishes he wasn’t._

 


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again! I know I haven't been updating this as often as I would like to. I'm sorry. I love this story so much, I want to make sure I get it just right. So my perfectionist tendencies are getting the best of me is basically what I'm saying :) 
> 
> But thank you for your patience and support, you're all the best! As always I'd love to know your thoughts!
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Liam rests his head on Niall’s desk and closes his eyes in an attempt to escape from the sounds of his friends’ squabbling. After their collective melt down in the top floor toilets they all moved back down to the basement where Niall and Louis have spent the last twenty minutes arguing about what to do next. Louis thinks they should keep working the defense angle, while Niall’s approach is much more direct.

Niall shakes his head at whatever it was Louis just said. “I’m telling you, they have to have someone monitoring their networks otherwise they wouldn’t have caught you so quickly. Of course, you are terrible at covering your tracks so there’s that.” Louis huffs at him indignantly. “Oh please, you do realize that you wouldn’t have any intel to protect if I hadn’t stolen it first right? And what bloody good does it do us if we know who the keeper of Zayn’s network is?” Liam still has his eyes closed but he’s fairly certain his Irish friend is rolling his eyes right now. “How does that help us? Well, if we can get to the person who protects him we can find a way to make him vulnerable obviously.” Louis mumbles something under his breath that sounds a lot like “you have an answer for everything don’t you?”

Liam sighs as he opens his eyes again but he leaves his head down as he finally speaks. “Bob is the head of their cyber security.” Niall and Louis have mercifully stopped arguing, but now they’re both just staring at him and frankly it’s making him a little uncomfortable. He might have preferred the snarking actually. He attempts to shrug in his bent over position. “What?” 

Louis appears to collect himself first. “How the hell do you know that?” Liam sighs again. “I might have overheard him talking to Zayn in his office this morning. He’s the one that detected you Lou. He’s also the one that kicked you out of Zayn’s network. Apparently he guards more than just the door around here.” Niall and Louis are still staring at him, but now their mouths are hanging open in surprise. 

Louis shakes his head slightly. “Ok, so let me get this straight. You’re saying that you heard all of that and then you still walked into Zayn’s office and let him fuck you?” Liam doesn’t even have the energy to pretend to be angry at that question. He could tell there wasn’t a hint of judgement in Louis’ voice, only disbelief. _Liam can relate_. He nods the best he can with his head still resting on the desk. “Not my finest hour obviously.” 

Niall raises his eyebrows before letting out a cackling laugh. Liam and Louis’ looks of udder confusion only seem to make him laugh even harder, but he finally pulls himself together after a few minutes. “Sorry. I just started thinking about how mental this all is. Like honestly, you probably couldn’t even pass this shit off as the plot to a made for TV film. The investors would say it’s too unbelievable.” Liam soon realizes that he’s started laughing along with Niall at some point, Louis has too. But it’s not the normal kind of carefree laughing you normally have between mates, it’s more of a panic driven kind of nervous laugh that leaves an air of uneasiness in its wake. 

After the awkward laughter finally dies down Louis clears his throat and turns back to Niall. “Alight Ni, so now that we know that Bob is the Gatekeeper to Malik Industries _literally_. What do you propose we do with that information?” Niall seems to consider that for a few seconds. “We do exactly like I said. Now that we know who’s guarding them we find vulnerability.” Louis scoffs. “And how exactly are you planning to do that. Not sure that Bob is going to fall for you boyish good looks Horan.” Niall rolls his eyes. “There’s more than one person on the security team here you know?” 

Liam groans. “Please tell me you’re not talking about that kid Alec?” Niall puts his hands up defensively. “Why not?” Liam sighs again. “He literally looks like a puppy in human form.” Niall laughs at that. “You know how I love puppies Li.” Liam finally pushes himself up from the desktop so that he’s sitting straight in his chair. “I’m serious Ni. I don’t want any more innocent people getting sucked into this.” Niall nods. “I get that Li, and I agree. But I’m not sure we have a choice here. You’re clearly not getting anywhere with Zayn.” He throws a sideways glance at Louis. “And Lou’s having even worse luck with Harry. Plus, we already established that Bob is not the way to go. He’s ex military, he would see right through our bullshit in a second. Alec’s the weakest link, and our only shot at this point. Either that or we just sit around and wait for Zayn to sell Double L to the highest bidder.” 

Liam looks to Louis for backup, but he doesn’t get it. “Louis shrugs. I’m sorry Li, but I think Niall might be right here. So we get some information from Alec, doesn’t mean he has to get hurt right?” Liam huffs out an angry breath at that. “Yeah that’s probably what Harry said about you. Turned out well didn’t it?” It’s out of Liam’s mouth before he can even think twice about it. The hurt look that flashes across Louis’ face is like a punch to his gut. “Oh my god Lou, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean that I swear.” Louis holds his hand up to stop him. “No, it’s ok. You’re right. But so is Ni. I just don’t see how we have any other choice here Li.” 

Liam rests his head back on the desk. “Please just promise me we’ll be careful?” Niall nods down at him solemnly. “I promise Li. I’m going to do everything I can to make sure no one else gets hurt.”

Liam nods back, but at this point he’s not sure if that’s possible.

 


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, ok where do I start? I've been posting this fic for a year now and I'm still so grateful for all of the love and support that you've shown it. I'm so in love with this story, and it has been so fun for me to read all of your comments on it. Thank you for constantly encouraging me to keep writing. :)
> 
> I figured that after a year, you all deserve to get at least a few answers. I hope this chapter is at least a little bit satisfying for you. As always, I'd love to hear what you think.
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Zayn sighs as he stumbles into his flat. He feels drained, even though he’s home earlier than usual. He just couldn’t stand to be in the office anymore. Dancing around Harry’s constant probing questions is getting too hard. He’s already told him way too much. And then there’s Liam. Just looking at Liam makes his heart hurt. 

He shuts the door behind him. And the slam of the door dredges up a memory in his mind of that night after they played Louis’ drinking game at the bar. That was the first time Zayn brought Liam here to this flat. When he pushed him up against the door and kissed him the way he’d been wanting to for months. Looking back on it, that’s the moment when Zayn made a fatal error in this game. He never should have let himself get so out of control. Because once he let himself have Liam again he couldn’t give him up. It’s like someone who quit nicotine cold turkey suddenly sharing a harmless cigarette with a friend. It’s so much easier to pick up bad habits than it is to break them.

_Is Liam a bad habit though_? Probably not. More like the other way around. No matter how hard Zayn has tried to protect Liam through all of this he can’t seem to do anything other than fuck it up. He drops his keys on the small table by the door and makes his way to the kitchen. He can’t remember the last time he ate, but he’s not hungry. He reaches for a bottle of red wine instead. Once he’s poured himself a glass he carries it to the lounge and flips on the TV. 

He scans through a few channels before he finds a football game. He doesn’t even know who’s playing, but he doesn’t care. He’s not really even watching, he just needs the sound on in the background so he has something to drown out his thoughts. _Doesn’t seem to be working too well though_. 

Zayn can’t stop thinking about the mess he’s gotten everyone into. And now today he’s gone and made it a million times worse by opening his big fat mouth and telling Harry things he promised himself he would never share. Harry’s going to want to continue that conversation, but the less he knows the better. 

Zayn closes his eyes and thinks back to the day this all started. The day his life took a turn for the disastrous. It had seemed like a normal day, and it was, _until it wasn’t_. He had been working in his office on a budget report for their next shareholder’s meeting when his phone had buzzed with a text. It had been from an unknown number. Zayn had almost ignored it but something about it had caught his attention. It was a request for a meeting to discuss a business proposal, but it gave no details about the person arranging it. 

Zayn still isn’t fully sure what possessed him to go to that meeting that day, but something in his bones was just telling him that he should. The address was a restaurant not far from the office, so he was able to make it a few minutes early. He gave the hostess his name and was ushered to an empty table in the back corner of the restaurant. The place was nearly empty on account of it being late afternoon. Too late for the lunch crowd, yet too early for dinner. 

Zayn had decided he was wasting his own time and was preparing to just up and leave when he saw someone approaching his table out of the corner of his eye. His jaw dropped open when he saw who it was standing in front of him. Simon Cowell. 

Simon’s the CEO of Syco Technologies. His company had been comfortably sitting at the top of the tech market for years, right behind all the powerhouses: Apple, Google, Microsoft, etc. He had been in a good place. Until Malik Industries and Double L Technologies came along that is. Ever since then, Syco had fallen to the wayside. Sales had dropped dramatically and rumor had it that Syco was barely hanging on, in danger of having to close its doors. 

When Zayn had first started out Simon had trash talked him quite a bit. Always handing out poorly veiled jabs during interviews. At Harry’s request Zayn always tried not to engage, but he _had_ published a few snarky tweets. He’s only human after all. Eventually though, his work did all the talking for him and he was too busy running a flourishing company to worry about Simon and his bitter comments. 

Truthfully, until that very moment, Zayn hadn’t thought about Simon or his company for months. And yet there he was. Suddenly sitting in the seat across from Zayn with that trademark smug grin on his face. Zayn had squared his shoulders, not in the mood for whatever it was that was going on. “What the Hell is this Cowell? You bored or something, not enough business at your office?” 

Zayn couldn't help but feel a little pride in his chest when the smile had dropped off of Simon’s face and was replaced by a firmly set jaw. “Well Malik, I can see you’re just as charming as usual. But I don’t think it’s my company you should be concerned about.” Zayn had rolled his eyes at that. And who’s company should I be worried about Cowell? Mine? Cause it’s doing just fine, thank you very much.” 

Simon’s smirk had reappeared and it was really starting to get irritating. “Well that’s kind of up to you actually.” Zayn had leaned back in his chair then. Already done with this conversation. “Honestly Simon, is there a point to this? Cause some of us actually have successful companies to run.” Simon had scoffed at that before continuing. “Fine, since you’re so eager I’ll just lay it out for you. Double L Technologies is reportedly working on a project that is going to change the industry.” 

Zayn had wrinkled his forehead in confusion. “What the hell are you on about mate? I have no idea what Double L is working on. Why am I even here?” Simon was smiling then like the cat who had caught the canary, and it was starting to freak him out. “You see Zayn, that’s the best part. You’re going to help me get that project for myself.”

It was at that point that Zayn was sure that he had somehow crossed into another dimension where nothing made sense. “Ok, I have a lot questions. But how about I start with this one: so you want me to just walk into Double L, steal their shit, and then deliver it to you on a silver platter. Oh and follow up question: why the fuck would I help you?” Simon is still grinning, seemingly completely unfazed by Zayn’s attitude. “That’s your problem Z, you don’t think big enough. I don’t want you to just steal the project, I want you to get me the whole damn company.” 

Zayn chuckled humorously at that. “Still sounds insane, but what the hell? Why don’t you tell me what I would get out of this?” Simon had leaned forward then, his voice low but still steady. “Actually, it’s more what you don’t get. Do this for me, otherwise you make yourself my enemy and I bring you down right along with Double L.” Zayn had been deciding between walking out or standing up to deck simon, when the other man began to continue. 

“Oh and there’s another thing. You and Liam have a history correct?” That had Zayn’s attention. Something about the way he had asked that question had made Zayn’s skin crawl, and he had suddenly felt dirty. “What the fuck does that have to do with any of this?” Simon looked so giddy, like everything was going exactly the way he had planned it. “Well if you don’t do this, I’ll just find someone else who will. Someone who doesn’t have… the incentive to make sure that Liam doesn’t get hurt.”

Zayn’s head was spinning but he couldn’t decide if it was from surprise or anger, _probably both_. “You better not be threatening Liam, or I swear it will be the last thing you do Cowell.” Simon had just chuckled like Zayn had said something funny. “Oh Zayn, you act tough but you have weaknesses just like everybody else. Liam’s your weakness. And unfortunately for you, I’m not above stabbing people in their weak spot.” 

The rest of that meeting had gone by in a blur. It was like that was the moment he stepped onto a roller coaster that had yet to stop. Except it’s not the fun kind of roller coaster, it’s more like one that's speeding towards a dead end. 

What Zayn wouldn’t give to get off this ride.

 


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I'm sorry I've been MIA for a while, I just needed to take a little time to myself. x
> 
> I promise the next chapter will be more answers! As always, I'd love to hear what you think!
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Niall is a man on a mission. Mostly because nobody fucks with his friends and gets away with it, but also maybe just a little because he’s a fan of chaos. Not that he necessarily goes out looking for trouble, he’s not that crazy. It’s just that this whole thing with Zayn and Harry has be dragging out too long now. Niall’s ready to get in on the action, _he’s ready to get something done_. 

He looks up from his desk to see Louis wringing his hands with a worried expression on his face. He sighs, “seriously Lou you shouldn’t frown so much. It’s gonna give you wrinkles.” Louis gasps indignantly, “Excuse you. I’m going to be beautiful and timeless forever, thank you very much. Also, I have the right to worry. This is a dumb plan.” Niall rolls his eyes. He knows Louis’ just being dramatic because that’s how he is. They’ve both already agreed this is the way to go. Liam was a little more reluctant, but what other choice do they have? 

“So is Alec still at the security desk?” Louis nods absently, “yeah he is. Not sure when Bob’s coming back though, so you probably better move now if you’re gonna do this.” Niall grabs Louis’ hand and gives it a squeeze. “I _am_ gonna do this Lou. I’m doing it for you and Li, and this damned company that we’ve all poured our hearts and souls into. I know this plan isn’t the greatest, but isn’t the cause worth fighting for?” Louis frowns again, “so you’re saying the ends justify the means?” Niall shrugs, “yeah I guess. If you want to get that philosophical about it.” 

Louis looks down fiddling with the hem of his shirt. “I get what you’re saying Ni, and I do want to fight for this company. Double L, and you and Li are everything to me. It’s just that I can’t stop thinking about what Li said before, about how we’re doing the same thing to Alec that Harry did to me.” He looks up again and Niall suddenly wishes that he could somehow wipe all the pain from his friend’s face. 

He stands up from his chair and pulls Louis into a hug. After a few minutes he pulls back enough that he can look into Louis’ eyes, but he doesn’t let go. “Listen Lou, I get it. I really do. And no one said I was going to sleep with him, ok? I just need to get close enough to see if he’ll tell me anything about Zayn’s plan or about the way his security works. If Alec can just lead us to their weakness then we can use that to finally break our way in and do some real damage.” 

Louis nods, but he still looks worried. “And what if they don’t have a weak spot?” Niall chuckles at that. “Literally everyone has a weak spot Lou. It’s just a matter of finding it.” Louis seems to be considering that, so Niall gives his shoulders an encouraging squeeze before finally letting go. “All’s fair in love and war, remember?” Louis smiles weakly. “Yeah Ni, that’s why I’m so worried.”

***

Niall really needs to move. He’s been standing in front of the first floor lifts for the last two minutes. People are going to start thinking he’s gone mad. _Maybe he has_. He’s been watching Alec. The security guard is young, probably two or three younger than Niall himself. He’s a combination of tall, lean frame, a mop of unruly brunette hair, and a soft face framed by black plastic rimmed glasses. The whole thing gives him a little bit of the completely-oblivious-sexy-nerd vibe. He’s not necessarily Niall’s type. Then again, Niall doesn’t really have a type. He could see himself falling for Alec. 

He suddenly shakes his head in an attempt to clear that thought from his brain. He’s not trying to date him for Christ’s sake, he’s trying to get information for their mission. Maybe this _is_ a bad idea. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. He needs to focus. He can do this for Liam and Louis, and for everything they’ve worked endlessly towards for the last few years. He can do this, _he can_. 

He takes one more deep breath before he heads for the front desk. Alec is tapping away intently on his computer, but he turns around when he hears Niall behind him. Niall does his best attempt at a shy wave. “Hey Alec, alright?” The other man smiles brightly and Niall can’t help but notice the way that his entire face seems to light up. “Hey Niall! I’m good thanks, and you?” Niall shrugs. “Actually, I’m a little embarrassed.” He watches as a look of confusion passes over Alec’s face. “Why are you embarrassed?” Niall lifts a hand to rub the back of his neck sheepishly. “Well see, I’m kind of an idiot and I seemed to have misplaced my access card somewhere. As it turns out I can develop software with my eyes closed by when it comes to keeping track of a small piece of plastic I’m pretty useless.” 

Alec lets out a loud genuine laugh so enduring it makes Niall’s stomach flip a little. “Oh is that all? You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself, it happens all the time. I can make you a new one in a few minutes if you don’t mind hanging out for a few minutes.” Niall grins. “Hang out with you a little longer? I think I can manage.” He decides to throw in a casual wink which is rewarded with a fierce blush on Alec’s cheeks. Alec shakes his head as starts working on his computer again. “You tech geniuses. I always say you all are too brilliant to have time to worry about normal things like where your keys are.” Niall barks out a laugh at that. “I think you’re being a little generous mate. My mum always used to say I’d lose my head if it wasn’t attached.” Alec looks up to flash him a smile before grabbing the brand new access card that has just popped out of the special printer at his desk. 

He hands it to Niall. “Here you are, good as new. No one even has to know.” Niall sighs gratefully. “You’re a lifesaver honestly. I really didn’t want to have to explain to Zayn that I lost it, pretty sure that guy hates me. I don’t think I’ve ever even seen him smile.” That’s not _entirely_ true, he’s seen him smile at Liam quite a bit. Alec giggles in response. “Don’t feel too bad about it. I don’t think he smiles much to be fair.” Suddenly Alec slaps his hand over his face in surprise. “Oh god, please don’t tell him I said that.” Niall chuckles. “Don’t worry about it. I don’t think he and I are going to be having any gossip sessions anytime soon.” Alec laughs that beautiful laugh again. “Fair enough. Guess we’re both good at keeping secrets aren’t we?” Niall nods casually while wondering if there is more meaning behind Alec’s words. He decides not to dwell on it.

He leans forward so that his elbows are resting on the desk and he and Alec are face-to-face. “So since I owe you one, why don’t you let me take you out for a drink?” He watches as a look of hesitation passes over Alec’s face. He waves his hand dismissively. “It’s ok, you don’t have to if it makes you uncomfortable.” Alec shakes his head quickly. “No, it’s not that! I just don’t normally go our with coworkers outside of work. Mixing business and pleasure can be risky, you know?” _Niall knows_. He nods. “Yeah you’re right, I’m sorry.” Alec shakes his head again. “No, it’s ok. What’s one drink between mates right?” Niall can’t help but grin. “Exactly. Meet me here in the lobby after work?” Alec nods with a grin. “It’s a date!” Suddenly he’s blushing again. “I mean… it’s a _not_ date.” 

Niall chuckles as he walks back towards the lifts. He pulls out his wallet and places the new access card in a slot right next to his original one. 

_One little white lie never hurt anyone, right?_

 


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi lovlies! Thank you so much for your love and patience with this fic, means so much too me. x
> 
> Hopefully this chapter will give you some more answers. I'd love to know what you think, as always.
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

A lot of people have said that Harry has the patience of a Saint. He’s not sure he entirely agrees, although working with Zayn does tend to require maybe slightly more than an average level of patience. Zayn tends to find a way to make everything more difficult than it actually needs to be. And even though it’s frustrating as hell, it does make the end result that much more satisfying. _Maybe Harry’s just a glutton for punishment_. 

The thing is that this particular situation that Zayn has somehow gotten them both mixed up in is taking even more patience than usual. And Harry’s pretty sure he’s reached his end. That’s why he finds himself standing in front of the door to Zayn’s flat. He just doesn’t know why he hasn’t knocked yet. Maybe it’s because he came here to get more answers, but he doesn’t want to actually go through with it cause he’s afraid he won’t like them. 

After several minutes he somehow gathers the courage to raise a fist and rap it against the door. He hears some muffled shuffling from the other side before it finally opens. Harry notices right away that Zayn is still wearing the clothes he had on in the office earlier today, but they now look significantly more disheveled. A little bit like someone who has been living in the same clothing for days… under a bridge. He also notices the nearly empty bottle of wine in Zayn’s hand which probably explains a lot. 

Zayn just stands there in the doorway for several minutes swaying slightly on his feet and doing his best to glare at Harry, although it’s coming out a little more like a grimace. Finally he breaks the silence. “How’d you get in the building?” Harry shrugs, “Since _you_ refused to answer my texts, I called your landlord and told him you locked yourself out again. He gave me a key without hesitation. Maybe you should be a little less forgetful mate.” Zayn scoffs at that, “maybe I should get a new landlord.” He pauses to narrow his eyes at Harry, “or maybe I should get a new best friend.” 

Harry shakes his head in exasperation. “Don’t you think this is a conversation that is better to _not_ have in the middle of your hallway?” Zayn rolls his eyes, but he still steps to the side so that Harry can enter. He hands Harry the bottle of wine as he starts lumbering towards his kitchen. “You can have that one mate, going to uncork a new one.” Harry follows him, but deposits the bottle on the counter without a sip. He needs to have a clear head for this, even if Zayn doesn’t. 

Harry watches as Zayn clumsily uses a corkscrew to dislodge the cork from his chosen bottle. Suddenly he stops and looks up at Harry, and it almost looks like he’s actually alert. “If you had a key, why didn’t you just walk in? Why knock?” Harry almost bursts out laughing at the sudden randomness of the question. “You’re saying you would have preferred me ambushing you?” Zayn raises a brow. “Is that not what this is?” 

Harry takes a minute before he shakes his head. He lets out a long sigh before he finally speaks. “You realize I love you right?” Zayn looks a little confused, but he stays silent so Harry pushes on. “I mean, not romantically obviously. But I’ve never met another person that makes me feel the way you do. You infuriate me like no human has before. You constantly test me and push me to the edge until I’m sure I’m going to break. You make me question every moral and good thought I’ve ever had.” 

Zayn cuts him off with a groan as he pours himself a very healthy glass of wine. “Enough with the compliments Haz, I’m not sure I can take anymore arse kissing from you today.” Harry shakes his head, not deterred by Zayn’s sharply pointed sarcasm. “That’s the thing Z. On paper it makes no sense. If you look at the facts then there should be no reason for me to stick around all these years. I should have run when I had the chance.” He pauses to make sure Zayn is still following. “You know why I haven’t left?” Zayn shrugs, “cause our company offers great health insurance?” 

Harry rolls his eyes, but he can’t help but smile. “No you donut, the reason is you. As much as you drive me crazy, you also make me better than I ever could have imagined I could be. I was on the track to going nowhere fast when I met you Z. But you believed in me when no one else did, even when I didn’t believe in myself. I know that sounds cliche, but it’s true. I don’t know what exactly it is that you have yourself mixed up in now, but I can promise you there’s no way in hell I’m not going to fight it with you.” 

He finally looks into Zayn’s eyes when he finishes his speech. He can see so much hurt and pain in them it’s almost overwhelming. And he can practically feel his own heart break as he watches his friend crumple onto the floor in a pile of defeated humanity. There’s not much he can do, but drop to the ground himself and wrap his arms around Zayn. So that’s what he does, and they stay like that until the tears stop.

***

Harry frowns down at the slice of pizza in his hand trying to digest what Zayn just told him. “So what you’re saying is Simon lured you to a secret meeting just so he could threaten you into doing his shitty dirty work?” Zayn nods as he picks a piece of pepperoni off of his own slice, doing a better job of mutilating it than eating it. “Classy right?” Harry scoffs, “ok so I have another question.” Zayn chuckles lightly at that. “Of course you do Haz, lay it on me.” Harry attempts to level him with a look but it’s not very successful. “My question is, why risk everything for Liam? Why not just let Simon send some other lackey after him?” 

When Zayn looks up his eyes seem clearer than they have all night. “I’m pretty sure you know the answer to that.” Harry takes a deep breath. “Sorry, let me re-phrase. What I’m trying to say is, didn’t you throw him under the bus at Google and then walk away when he needed you? I’m not judging you Z, I’m really not. I’m just wondering, why the sudden chivalry now?” He watches as Zayn closes his eyes for several moments as if gathering his thoughts. 

“Chivalry has nothing to do with it H. I knew the only way I could get that promotion I had been dreaming about my whole life would be if I got it at Liam’s expense. I guess I was being naive, but I thought that I could do it and then it would just work itself out in the end. But, do you know how much I regretted it the second I did it? It was like a sudden moment of clarity that slapped me in the face. But it was too late, I couldn’t take it back and I knew Liam would never forgive me. I thought it might somehow be easier for him if I just disappeared and then he could go on with his own life, pick up the pieces and all that. But then bloody Simon Cowell comes waltzing in with his sleazy threats and there was just no way I could let it go. I would never be able to live with myself if Liam got hurt because of me, _not again_.”

He pauses to shake his head. “But that’s the irony isn’t it? Because even after everything I did to try and protect him, I just ended up hurting him in the end.” He stops for a moment, and when he continues his voice is shaking. “I can’t ever seem to do anything without fucking it up.” 

Harry shakes his head violently in protest before reaching across the kitchen counter to grab Zayn’s hand and give it a squeeze. “That’s not it Z. Your problem is you just can’t do it all alone. Your just need someone crazy enough to help you. Which is obviously me.” He gestures to his own outfit. “I mean have you seen the way I fearlessly mix prints?” Zayn gives him a weak smile. “You realize this is going to be messy right?” Harry nods without hesitation.

“Never met a mess I couldn’t clean up.” He just wishes he felt as confident as he sounds. 

 


	32. Chapter 32

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey loves! *grovels on knees for your forgiveness for not updating in over a month* 
> 
> In all seriousness though, I am sorry for disappearing. Life and writer's block and all that. But for anyone who has stuck around, thank you so much for your patience and your support. This chapter is short, but I'm excited to get back into it! 
> 
> Would love to know your thoughts, or just pop in the comments to say hi. I missed you guys! :) 
> 
> I hope you're having a great day wherever you are. x
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Maybe it shouldn’t feel like this anymore. Maybe it never should have. The problem ultimately, is that he’s not sure that he knows anymore. Or rather the even bigger problem is that he’s not sure that he cares. They’ve made so many mistakes at this point they’re all starting to blur together now into one awful blob of pain and regret. But, there’s something else there too. It’s that something else that keeps this crazy train rolling. Attraction probably, or familiarity, or maybe in some twisted way it’s _love_. Except it can’t be that, can it? _No definitely not_. 

Liam slams his laptop closed in frustration. He’s been staring at the same line of code for twenty minutes without getting anywhere. Mostly cause he can’t get his damn mind to focus, at least not on the right thing. He shakes his head at himself as he shoves his computer in his bag. He just found out that Zayn might very well be in the process of sellingDouble L to the highest bidder. He should be furious, he should be raging. He should be burning this whole bloody building down, or at the very least he should be in Zayn’s face to confront him. _But he can’t_.

There’s so many reasons why. But perhaps the biggest one is that he doesn’t trust himself to be around Zayn without giving in to whatever he wants. Because apparently that’s a thing now. Or maybe it always was, maybe that’s the ugly truth. Maybe he needs a drink. 

He slings his bag over his shoulder and makes his way out of their makeshift basement office and to the elevator. It’s earlier than he would normally leave, but whatever. He needs to get out of here before he suffocates. He sees that Bob is at his post as he passes by. Bob gives him a nod, and what Liam realizes is a fake smile. “Have a nice evening Liam.” Liam just grunts in response, but then pauses and turns back to Bob before pushing through the front door. “Don’t worry, I’m not planning to hack into Zayn’s Wi-Fi tonight. So you can take a well deserved night off, you’ve earned it.” He gives him a salute before slipping out the door. 

He chuckles to himself like a maniac as he thinks about the stricken look of surprise on Bob’s face. He’s probably going to regret doing that, because it’s probably going to cause yet another unnecessary shit storm when they realize Liam is on to them. But if you start a fire while you’re already engulfed in flames, does it even really matter?

He’s not entirely sure where he’s going, but he knows he’s not ready to go home yet. Sitting around in his empty flat seems like a dangerous option. No telling what stupid ideas his brain could come up with if he allows it the freedom to do so. He still heads in the direction of his flat though, and he soon realizes where his subconscious has decided to take him. 

It’s this seedy little bar neatly tucked away and hidden in the heart of the London club scene. Amid the velvet ropes, bouncers, and over hyped celebrity guest DJs is Liam’s little slice of under appreciated heaven. You have to walk through a dark alley to get to the entrance and they don’t even check your ID at the door. 

He notices that there’s only a few other patrons in the bar when he enters, not too surprising considering that the work day hasn’t yet ended for most people. He makes his way to the bar and orders a beer on tap. The bartender doesn’t say anything to him at all just pours him his drink and hands it to him, starting him a tab without even asking. Liam takes it from him gratefully and moves through the bar to find himself a spot to sit. 

He finds the perfect spot isolated in a far corner. He sinks into the oversized leather armchair that looks like it was pulled out of someone’s basement after being long forgotten for years. The best way Liam could describe this place is a cross between a dive bar and an indie coffee shop. The lights are dim, the music is loud but not intrusive, most people are here alone, and literally none of the furniture matches. It’s a weird juxtaposition, but it works and Liam loves it. 

He sets his beer on the small side table next to his chair and pulls his laptop out of his bag. He figures he might as well take another crack at that code he was stuck on. Maybe the change in scenery was all he needed. He soon realizes that was not the case. He only makes minimal progress before his mind drifts again. He pulls some headphones out of his bag and drains nearly half his beer. Maybe he’ll be able to get in the zone. 

Several beers and depressing songs later and he’s definitely in the zone, just probably not the right one. He still hasn’t gotten anywhere with his work, but that doesn’t really matter because he’s reached a resolution in his mind now. The only way he’ll ever be able to get back to running his company and running his life is if he ends this thing with Zayn, _whatever it is_ , once and for all. 

He drains what is either his third or fourth beer, he’s lost count, and pulls out his cell phone to text Niall. 

Liam: _Hey, I kno your probably still with Alec… But if you find out anything from him or from Z’s laptop, I want you to use it. I don’t care what it is. Just pull the trigger. I want this to be done. I’m done_. 

After sending the message, he puts his phone away again and closes his eyes. That was good, this is good. He meant it. 

_Now he just needs his brain to convince his heart_.

 


	33. Chapter 33

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! Once again, thank you so much for all of your support on this story. I really don't know why any of you put up with my inconsistent updates, but I'm so glad that you do! <3
> 
> As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas for where you'd like this to go. Hope you're all having the best day. x
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Louis thinks sometimes that his skill for hacking computers has warped his expectations of reality. Or maybe it was his therapist who said that, _whatever_. Life would be so much easier if he could just hack people the way that he can hack technology. Like instead of having to ask someone a question and then determining whether or not their answer is actually the truth, what if you could just get the true contents of their brain with a few strokes on the keyboard? If that was a thing Louis would be a fucking billionaire by now. Also he probably wouldn’t be sat on Harry’s doorstep, like he is currently, waiting for him to get home from God knows where. 

He’s made the executive decision that he needs to at least _try_ to confront Harry to see if he’ll give him any answers. He didn’t run it by Liam and Niall because he didn’t want to burden them with more than what they’re already dealing with. He definitely didn’t avoid telling them about it, just because he knew they would try to talk him out of it. _Definitely not_. 

He’s just about to cut his losses and head home when he catches a flurry of messy curls in his peripheral vision. He looks over to see Harry walking hesitantly in his direction. Louis has to give him credit, he doesn’t look overly shocked to see him. Just maybe a little confused, and definitely tired. In fact, he sort of looks dead on his feet. If Louis didn’t totally hate his guts he might actually feel bad for him.

Harry sighs as he pushes past Louis to unlock his front door. Once he successfully pushes it open he pauses to turn back to Louis and raises a questioning brow. “You coming in or what?” Louis grins and nods, following him in. He’s not really sure what he was expecting Harry’s place to look like, but he realizes now that this isn’t it. Every thing is very simple, all monochrome and clean lines. It’s basically the opposite of the outrageous outfits Harry’s always sporting.  He’s still contemplating the significance of Harry’s interior design aesthetic when he belatedly realizes they’re now in the kitchen, and also Harry must have asked him something because he’s just staring at him with an inquisitive look on his face. Louis shakes his head slightly, “I’m sorry what was that?” 

Harry rolls his eyes before turning behind him to open up a cabinet and pull out a glass. “I asked if you wanted something to drink?” 

Louis hums, “oh right. Water‘s fine.” He watches as Harry fills them both a glass from the tap and then gestures for Louis to follow him. 

They make their way back to the front room and sink down onto the overstuffed sofa. Leave it to Harry Styles to actually own a _white_ sofa. Harry takes a sip of his water before finally turning to Louis. “So do I even bother asking how you know where I live?” 

Louis lets out a started laugh. “That’s your first question, seriously?” Harry’s exasperated expression only serves to make him laugh harder, but he eventually pulls it together. “I hacked it from your company directory. Child’s play, really. Although I could have gotten it from your social media easily enough if I’d wanted to. You really should take your online security more seriously Harold.” 

Harry narrows his eyes before a self-satisfied expression covers his face. “What if I wanted you to find me?” His already deep voice had dropped an octave as he said it and Louis does his best to ignore the spark that tone sent shooting up his spine. He squares his shoulders. If that’s how Harry wants to play, _then he’ll play too_. 

“And why exactly would you want to lure me here Harry?” He doesn’t miss the way Harry’s eyes flick to Louis’ lips before he answers. 

“No one said anything about luring Lou. I’m just saying, maybe I’m not hiding. Not everything has to have an evil agenda you know?” Louis tries to search his eyes for even a hint of sarcasm, but he can’t find one. 

“I _don’t_ know Harry. Honestly, I’m not sure I know anything about you at all. _Not really_.” Harry closes his eyes and he looks like he’s in pain. 

“Look Lou. If I could just explain all this to you, I would. It wouldn’t fix everything, but at least you’d have some answers. I’d do anything to give you that.” He opens his eyes again, and when he locks them with Louis’ the intensity of Harry’s gaze catches him a little off guard. “Actually, I’d do anything to take it all back and do it differently. But I can’t Louis. I can sit here and try to tell you that I’m a good person until I’m blue in the face, but it wont’ mean a damn thing if I can’t prove it. That’s what I’m trying to do. I don’t expect you to believe me. But maybe you can give me a second chance, even though I don’t deserve it.” 

Louis blinks. His brain is having a hard time processing this. If he had an internal hard drive inside of him, it would be melting right now. “So you’re not going to tell me anything? You’re just asking me to trust you after you’ve already screwed me over once? _Literally_.” 

Harry purses his lips together in a line. “I said I don’t deserve it. I completely understand if you..” He cuts off when Louis leans froward to cover Harry’s mouth with his hand. 

“Do you ever stop talking? Bloody hell. I was just asking you for clarification, I never said I wasn’t considering it. Maybe I’m crazy, my shrink would probably agree, but for some reason I _do_ believe you.” Harry is looking at him like he has two heads. 

“Wait, really?” Louis just nods his head silently. He really can’t believe he said that either so he’ll excuse Harry’s slow comprehension. Harry slumps further into the sofa. “Well ok then.” They both sit in silence for a few beats before Harry finally speaks again. “So what do we do now?” 

Louis gives him a shrug. “Now I guess you prove me right for trusting you. Cause let me tell you something Harry Styles, I hate being wrong.” He meant it as a joke to lighten the mood a little, but once again Harry’s expression is nothing but serious.

When he speaks his voice is barely above a whisper. “I promise I’m going to do everything I can to prove it, or I’ll die trying.”

For some reason Louis feels like Harry meant that literally. Maybe that’s why Louis’ brain decides that it’s a good idea to lean forward and kiss him. 

_This is why Louis prefers computers, they’re so much less complicated than people._

 


	34. Chapter 34

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi loves! So I think I finally have an idea on where I'm going with this story. Thanks again for sticking around and for all of your support, I honestly wouldn't have gotten this far without all of you. 
> 
> Don't panic at the chapter count. There's going to be a part two coming! This is probably going to be the last update for the year. But as always, I would absolutely love to hear your thoughts and ideas! :) 
> 
> I hope you all have the best New Year's and I will catch you again in 2018! x
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

Zayn sighs down at the mug of coffee in his hand. It’s quarter to midnight and he’s maybe just finally reached a state that is somewhere near sober. He tries to clean up the mess from he and Harry’s impromptu pizza party for two, but his effort is half-arsed at best. He decides in the end to leave it all for tomorrow, because apparently that’s his new life strategy. He wanders into his lounge and sinks down on to the sofa before absently reaching for his phone that’s been sitting lonely on his coffee table for the last few hours. 

He immediately sits up straight when he notices the string of texts he’s missed. There’s maybe ten or so of them, _and they’re all from Liam_. They start to get more frantic and incoherent as he scrolls through them. Without thinking he pulls up Liam’s contact and hits the call button. Liam picks up on the third ring and his voice comes through muffled and maybe a little slurred. “Zayn! Why aren’t you here? Why are you never here when I need you? Why do you always make me need you and then disappear?” 

Zayn inhales sharply at the questions and the unsteadiness of Liam’s voice. He’s officially worried. “Li, where are you? I’ll come get you right now.” Liam seems to be muttering to himself and Zayn wonders briefly if he forgot he was on the phone. Suddenly he seems to snap back to the conversation. 

“Seriously Z. I thought I was done. Thought _we_ were done. Then you just show back up out of nowhere and steal my app, probably my whole bloody company. Why won’t you just leave me alone?”

Zayn closes his eyes and forces himself to take a deep breath. Everything Liam is saying is mostly true, but that doesn’t make it sting any less. He opens his eyes again, he’s determined now. “Listen Li, I know I fucked up ok? But please just tell me where you are. Let me help you, please?” He knows he’s practically begging now, but he couldn’t care less.

When Liam speaks again his voice sounds far away, like he’s not even holding his phone up to his ear anymore. “I’m outside you idiot. Been here for an hour.” Startled, Zayn snaps his head to his front door as if that’s going give him the answer he’s looking for. When that brilliant plan doesn’t work he reaches for his house keys instead. 

“Don’t move, ok? I’m coming.” Zayn hears Liam grunt in response followed by a click noise and then nothing. Zayn pulls his phone away from his ear to see that the call has ended. _He hung up._ “Shit.”

He bolts out his front door and practically runs down his hallway. His neighbors probably think he’s insane, but he doesn’t care. The only thing he cares about right now is Liam. _Liam, who is probably drunkenly wandering the streets somewhere because Zayn has slowly driven him crazy_. 

As soon as his feet hit the pavement he realizes he has no idea which direction he should go, but it turns out to be an invalid concern. He spots Liam almost immediately. It’s not too hard considering there’s practically no one else outside at this hour. Not to mention the fact that the autumn night has turned cold and it’s drizzling rain. 

He’s slumped on the ground with his back pressed against the wall of Zayn’s building. He’s wearing nothing but a thin t-shirt that has been completely soaked through by the rain, and jeans. He barely lifts his head when Zayn drops down to his knees in front of him. “Oh my god Li, how long have you been out here?”

He just shrugs noncommittally, seemingly unfazed by Zayn’s quickly rising panic. “Don’t know. Texted you, but you didn’t answer.” 

Zayn shakes his head in disbelief before holding his hand out to help him up. “C’mon let’s get you inside.” Liam doesn’t answer, but he does let Zayn pull him up to standing and lead him into his building. It’s not until they get inside Zayn’s flat that he realizes that Liam’s shivering. “Shit, we need to warm you up.” He grabs Liam’s hand again and pulls him towards his bedroom with little resistance. 

He drags Liam into his bathroom and leans him against the counter while he starts the shower. When he turns back to Liam he sees that he’s staring at him intently. “What?” Liam takes several beats to answer, which only serves to add to the unsettling feeling forming in Zayn’s stomach.

“Why were you crying?” Zayn just stares at him dumfounded for several seconds before he’s able to compose himself.

“What do you mean? When?” Liam tilts his head to the side as if Zayn is a puzzle he’s trying to solve. 

“The first night I slept over here. That morning I snuck out. Before I left, I heard you in here crying.” Zayn bites his lip. That feels like it was years ago now, even though it’s only been days. He had no idea Liam had heard him. He’s about to answer when he sees another powerful shiver wrack Liam’s body, so he shakes his head. “Let’s warm you up first, then we’ll talk. I promise, ok?” Lim nods reluctantly and lets Zayn pull him into the waiting shower. He doesn’t even bother taking their clothes off. They just stand under the warm water, letting it wash away the cold. 

_If only water could wash away pain too_.

***

Eventually they find themselves dry and in Zayn’s kitchen. Liam is wearing one of Zayn’s hoodie’s and also has a fuzzy blanket wrapped around his shoulders. He definitely looks much warmer, and his eyes might be just a little less glassy too. Zayn sets a mug of tea in front of him before taking a seat next to him at his kitchen island. 

Liam takes a sip before putting his mug back down and turning to Zayn. “So can we talk now?” Zayn just nods. He still really doesn’t want to do this, but he knows he can’t put if off any longer. _It’s been long enough_. 

“I want you to answer my question, Z. Why were you crying that morning?” He looks so determined it almost makes Zayn laugh, but he’s doesn’t. _Because it isn’t funny_. 

He sighs. “I guess I was crying because I was overwhelmed. I’ve never wanted something so bad while also feeling so guilty it almost made me sick. I never should have brought you back here that night. I just made what was already a complicated situation a million times worse.” 

Liam looks shocked, and also a little bit like Zayn just kicked his puppy. “Why are you making it sound like you’re the victim here? _You_ blackmailed _me_ Zayn. I was perfectly happy the way I was, pretending like you didn’t exist. Pretending like you didn’t make me the happiest I’ve ever been only to rip it all away from me. You really fucked me up, do you know that? But I was figuring it out. I was fine, or almost fine at least. And then you had to go and insert yourself back in my life again and turn everything I’ve ever known upside down. So where the hell do you get off telling me that you feel guilty? If you at all felt bad about it you wouldn’t have done it all, or at the very least you wouldn’t have let it get this far. Tell me one good reason why I should feel even a little bit sorry for you Zayn?”

His voice has risen with every word and by the time he gets to the end he’s practically screaming. But Zayn can’t blame him. He’s right. He deserves to be angry. He deserves so much more than Zayn’s given him. 

Zayn’s voice is shaking when he finally answers. “Nothing I say will fix this Li. I can’t fix it.” 

Liam shakes his head, but he looks maybe a little less angry. Mostly just annoyed. “Well why don’t you at least try? Why don’t you tell me why you decided to blackmail me into handing my app over to you? And while you’re at it you can also tell me why you’re trying to sell my fucking company?” 

Zayn snaps his eyes up to Liam’s in shock. “What? How do you know about that?” 

Liam rolls his eyes in annoyance. “Oh please. Like you and Bob didn’t already know that it was Louis who stole that shit from your network. Niall’s been protecting all of it and going through it piece by piece. We’re going to use it to take you down Z.”

Zayn can’t speak. He just seems to be shaking his head in horror. _This can’t be happening._ Finally he manages to force words out of his mouth. “You can’t do that Li. You have to stop.” 

Liam scoffs at that. “Or what? You’re going to kill me?” Zayn knows he’s joking, _but this isn’t a joke_. He grabs onto Liam’s arm harshly, which seem to effectively get his attention.

“Not me. But if you keep pushing this you could very well get us all killed.”

Liam just stares at him in disbelief before finally answering. “What are you talking about Z? What’s going on?” He looks scared, and Zayn wishes more than anything that he could just make all of this go away.

“I can’t tell you all the details, but I promise you that I’m not doing this cause I want to. There are darker forces at work here Li. And if you keep pushing this, they could retaliate and put us all in danger. You need to call Niall off. I know I don’t deserve it, but I need you to trust me on this.” 

Liam still looks terrified but he nods anyway. Suddenly his phone vibrates in front of him and Zayn watches his face go pale as he unlocks his screen. 

Zayn’s voice comes out at a higher than normal pitch when he speaks. “What is it?” Liam looks back up at him in panic.

“It’s from Niall. I think it’s too late.”

 


	35. Chapter 35

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi loves! I'm sorry I know it's been forever since I've updated again. Honestly winter just isn't really my season, but I appreciate your patience. And I know I say this practically every time, but thank you all so much for your support on this story. All of your kudos and comments are the reason I've gotten this far. 
> 
> This is the final chapter in this part, but don't worry part 2 will be coming! Writing this chapter felt really good. I hope you like it. As always I'd love to hear your thoughts.
> 
> Hope you're all doing well and having the best day! <3
> 
> Thanks for reading! x

The echo of their footsteps on the marble floors of the Malik Industries lobby seem so loud it’s almost as if Liam can feel the vibration hitting his ear drums. There’s not another soul around, the place is completely deserted. But that makes sense considering it’s nearly 3am. Liam follows Zayn into a lift and they’re completely silent as it makes its way up to the top floor. 

When they get to the conference room they find it empty, the others haven’t arrived yet. Liam still doesn’t fully know what’s going on, which to be fair has been the entire plot to his life ever since Zayn popped back into it. All he knows for certain is Zayn is clearly freaking out, even though he’s trying his best to hide it from Liam. Zayn had insisted that he get Niall and Louis to meet them here while he would contact Harry and ask him to do the same. It turned out that they only needed to make two phone calls instead of three considering that Louis and Harry were already together at Harry’s. Liam will _definitely_ be talking to Louis about that later, although he probably doesn’t have a leg to stand on considering he himself was at Zayn’s. _God he feels like he never even saw the waves, and yet somehow he’s already drowning_. 

They still haven’t spoken a word to each other since they left Zayn’s place. Zayn hasn’t even bothered to turn on the lights. The room is only softly illuminated by the moon and the secondhand glow of the sleepless city coming in through the full length windows that line the outer wall. But it seems better that way, _this is the type of meeting that should be had in the dark_. Liam realizes he can still feel the trace of alcohol buzzing in his system but he’s not sure he could handle this situation sober so it’s probably for the best.

He’s pulled from his dark and rambling thoughts by the sound of footsteps in the hallway. He looks up just as Harry enters the conference room followed by Louis and Niall. The three of them must have crossed paths in the lobby. They all seem to be sporting the same solemn look that’s laced with confusion. 

Louis and Niall move naturally to sit on either side of Liam, while Harry takes a seat on the other side of the table next to Zayn. Niall turns to Liam not acknowledging the others at all. “Why are we here Li?” 

Louis nods, “yeah what’s going on?” 

Zayn clears his throat. “You’re here Niall because we all need to talk. We need to discuss what you’ve set in motion tonight.” 

Niall still refuses to so much as glance at Zayn, his determined blue eyes remain locked on Liam. “Li?”

Liam sighs, “honestly Ni I’m not fully sure yet what’s going on. But I think we need to hear him out. For me, please?” He reaches out and grabs Niall’s hand in his left, and Louis’ in his right.

Niall’s expression still hasn’t softened any, but he nods his head tentatively before finally turning his gaze towards Zayn. Liam feels Louis give his hand a squeeze, his silent way of communicating that he’s on board too. 

Zayn looks a little surprised that Niall was convinced so easily, but he pushes on anyway. “Look, I realize that we should have had this conversation from the very beginning, and maybe then this wouldn’t have gotten so fucked up.” He pauses for a moment as if he’s still trying to rearrange the thoughts in his head. “But I want you to know that I did what I did cause I honestly thought it was the best for everyone. I thought if I just kept quiet I could handle it on my own and I wouldn’t need to drag you all into it.”

Liam nearly jumps when Niall raises his voice beside him, “bloody hell Malik just get to the damn point.” 

Zayn looks like he’s about to fire back before Harry puts a comforting hand on his shoulder. His words come out barely above a whisper, but Liam’s still able to hear them across the table. “Go on Z, you can do this.” 

Zayn gives him a nod and takes a deep breath before continuing. “Honestly, I never wanted any of this. It wasn’t my idea to blackmail you Liam.” Liam feels Louis’ fingernails dig into his palm, but he almost welcomes the pain. It might be the only thing keeping him grounded at the moment. 

Zayn looks like he expected one of them to respond to that, but he moves on when he hears nothing. “A few weeks ago I was approached by someone under the guise of a business meeting. It turns out they were more interested in making threats than pitching any business proposals.” 

Zayn pauses before looking straight at Liam. “Li, they told me they wanted your company. They said they’d stop at nothing to get it. I was told that if I didn’t help them they’d find someone who would, someone who wouldn’t care if you got hurt.” 

Liam can’t speak, it’s as if someone has punched him in the gut and all the air has left his lungs. This time it’s Louis who speaks up for their side of the table. “Who?” He waits a few seconds before raising his voice when Zayn doesn’t produce an answer. “I said who was it Zayn?” 

Zayn looks hesitant before he glances to Harry who gives him a reassuring nod. “Simon. It was Simon Cowell.”

Suddenly Liam’s voice is back and he lets out a disbelieving laugh of surprise. _Of course it was Simon_. He was king of the mountain before Liam and Zayn showed up on the scene. And the man has fewer morals than the devil himself. His plan is kind of brilliant, Liam thinks bitterly. Why not make one of his biggest rivals take out the other and watch them both destroy themselves in the process? 

Zayn’s voice is shaking slightly when he speaks again. “He knows everything Li. About Google and the software you used to make your app. And he knows about _us_.” 

Niall seems to have composed himself enough to speak again. “So what, you just went along with it? Why not fight back? Why not expose him?”

Zayn closes his eyes for a few brief seconds before responding. “I considered it, I truly did. I also thought about just walking away and pretending it never happened. But I had no reason to believe he was bluffing, and I decided I couldn’t risk it.” His eyes are locked on Liam’s again. “I’ve already hurt you once Liam. I thought maybe this time I could save you. I felt like that was the least that I owed you.” 

Liam clears his throat, willing his voice not to shake. He’s only mildly successful. “So what now?”

Zayn sighs, “well now that Niall has published that article the entire world knows about my plan to use our collaboration on the app as a way to steal your company. I’m afraid that in Simon’s eyes he’ll think I’ve failed, at which point I’ll be completely useless to him. Honestly, I have no idea what his next move is going to be.”

He pauses again before pushing his chair away from the table and standing. “That’s why I’ve asked you all here tonight. To make a final pitch. Well, more like a plea. I think the only hope we have to get out of this mess at this point is if we join forces. Work together to stop Simon before he finds a way to destroy all of us. I know it’s a lot to ask, but I had to try.” When he sinks back into his chair he looks deflated, like he used every last ounce of energy he had left in delivering that speech.

The room is so silent now you could hear a pin drop, _or maybe even a heart break_. Niall speaks again, but his voice is quieter than it’s been all night. “Li?” He doesn’t continue until Liam finally looks at him. “It’s your decision. Whatever you decide, I’ll back you.” 

Liam tries to hold back the tears that he can already feel welling up as he turns to Louis who gives him a nod. “Me too Li. I’m on your team. Always.” Liam smiles. Hot tears are steadily falling down his face now, beyond his control. 

He gives both of their hands a strong squeeze before directing his attention back to the other side of the table. Everyone in the room seems to be holding their breath as they wait for his answer. He’s not entirely sure what to say, but he decides to go with what his heart wants. _He probably should have listened to it a long time ago_. 

“We’re in.”

_They’re already drowning, how could it possibly get any worse?_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We made it to the end! I hope you've enjoyed reading this part as much as I've enjoyed writing it. Part 2 will be titled: Deep Enough to Drown. So look out for that! :)
> 
> Can't thank you enough for reading! x


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